Stars on a Rainy Night
by madamada-chan
Summary: When Ryoma comes back, everyone expected the team would be reunited again, and be like the way it was in junior high, until they found out that he didn't join the tennis club at all.
1. Chapter 01: Friend

**Warnings:** Hm... None for this chapter, but for later chapters there might be spoilers and of course, eventual boy x boy relationship. If you are uncomfortable with that, please turn back and read another fic. Otherwise, enjoy :D

As for the pairing... well, you'll find out eventually. ;) Very, verrry slightly hinted in this chapter. Blink and you'll miss it. More obvious hints will come along as the story progresses. And unless I change my mind (which happens quite often XD) about the plot I initially had in mind, the real pairing might not become apparent until much later :p

* * *

The bell signaling the end of the last period resounded throughout the school. The hallways were immediately filled with students and their voices as they caught up with their friends. Things like what they did during vacation or the latest news and gossip were the most commonly heard topics.

Amidst all the noise, one student carrying a pile of hardbound books that made him look all that much smaller was quietly passing by, hoping to avoid unnecessary attention.

That was until a loud screech from behind nearly made him trip over his own feet.

"Echizen?!!! So it's true! You _are_ back! "

There went all the sweat and blood he poured into staying unnoticed. _'Looks like Horio hasn't changed one bit'_, Ryoma sighed. He silently prayed that the other girl who was just as loud wasn't anywhere within the ten kilometer radius.

As expected, the volume of chattering in the hallway slowly receded until it finally died down. Subtly increasing his pace, he walked past the students while keeping his head down and acting like nothing had happened. Some people who were blocking the way stepped aside, as though clearing a path for him. It was only a mere three seconds later that he realized they were indeed giving way, not to him, but to someone who was loudly dashing behind him.

Ryoma slowly moved aside too, carefully balancing the pile of books he had on his thin arms when the person running grabbed his shoulders from behind.

"Ochibi!"

Ryoma knew that voice (not to mention that irritating nickname) all too well. However, he had no time to react when he felt himself suddenly being overpowered by the weight of the person bear-hugging him, pushing him down. At the same time, the books he held started to sway. Unable to react, he closed his eyes as he readied himself to fall, face first, into the ground.

The expected impact didn't come.

Someone caught his hands, supporting his hold on the books and preventing him from losing his balance. Ryoma noticed the warmth radiating from his helper's hands, bringing back the feeling in his arms that were starting to numb.

"Eiji, please be more careful."

The instant he heard the soft, almost melodious voice, a smiling face flashed in his mind.

"Sorry, Fuji." Eiji swiftly tightened his hold on Ryoma before releasing him. "It's been so long since I last saw Ochibi, nya." He ruffled the soft olive hair, making the shorter boy scrunch his nose.

"Right... It's been a while, ne Echizen?" When Ryoma looked up, he saw Fuji's smiling face. It was just as he'd remembered it.

Ryoma blinked before his eyes lit up and his lips quirked into a tiny smile. "Aa. Thanks, Fuji-senpai."

"You're on your way to the library, aren't you? Here, let me help." Eiji grinned. He was about to take the books from Ryoma but the latter firmly held on to it.

"No, thanks, Kikumaru-senpai. I can do this on my own." And he started to walk off.

"Stubborn as ever, I see." Fuji chuckled beside Eiji.

"Yeah. He hasn't changed at all, that little one."

Eiji's gaze followed Ryoma's retreating back as he yelled after him. "Hurry up, ne? We'll see you at practice, nya!"

Ryoma's steps suddenly halted.

"About that..." Ryoma quietly began. "I didn't sign up for the tennis club."

Eiji was dumbstruck.

"Then... What club are you in?" Fuji asked, all traces of his ever-present smile now gone from his face.

"The going home club." Ryoma answered without looking back. He moved forward before any more questions came from his seniors and the freshmen trio who were walking towards them.

-x-

_Drown out the confusing noise_

_Shake free the gazes that have grown apathetic_

_Continue from here, on to the next stage_ (1)

-x-

----------------------------   
**Stars on a Rainy Night **   
----------------------------

Ryoma felt somewhat relieved when he was able to get out of the school building and make his way across the school grounds without meeting any familiar faces, especially his former teammates. He silently thanked his luck for being the library rep that day, giving him an excuse to stay at the library through the duration of club practices.

At the moment, all he wanted to do was go home, where he could curl up next to Karupin in his warm bed and fall into a dreamless sleep- something that he'd rarely had ever since… that time. He swiftly shook his head, ridding himself of memories, he didn't want to remember just yet.

"Oi, is it true?"

Just a few more steps and he would've made it safely out of school, if someone hadn't stepped out from behind the Cherry tree closest to the school gate. As soon as Ryoma looked up, an intimidating expression met his droopy gaze.

_'Let's see…'_ Ryoma tilted his head to one side, trying to dig up the name that matched the familiar face. Then his eyes lit up. _'Ah, Arai-senpai, was it?'_

"Don't give me that!" Arai spat angrily. "Don't tell me you actually forgot about me!" Arai clenched a fist in front of the shorter boy's face.

Ryoma cringed. He hadn't realized he said it out loud.

"Anyway… What's with this talk among your fellow midgets? They're all saying this nonsense about you not joining the tennis club. Is that true?"

Ryoma didn't reply, irritating his senior, making the older boy clutch at the front of his uniform.

"Answer me!"

"That's what they said, isn't it?"

Arai tightened his hold. "You're kidding." Then he shook him forcefully. "Why!? I don't remember you having any problems storming your way into the team three years ago! So what's up with you now, eh?"

Ryoma simply looked back with a nonchalant expression.

"Fine. If you're not going to tell me, then I'll beat the answer out of you!"

Arai raised his right hand, fist clenched and ready to strike. When Ryoma didn't so much as flinch, it was the reaction Arai sort of expected.

The younger boy had always been like that, unafraid of anything. What surprised him, however, was that Ryoma didn't make any attempts to fight back, either. On the contrary, he even looked as though he had long prepared himself to receive the hit. It was as if he was openly accepting punishment he deserved for something terrible he had done. This aggravated Arai further and triggered him to punch the kid's lights out.

However, before his fist could hit Ryoma's face, someone else grabbed his wrist.

"Oi oi… Just because you're older doesn't mean you can bully little kids, man. You can't do that. You just can't."

"Shut up!" Arai turned to the other person angrily. "This isn't the time for that, Momo! Besides, you must've heard about it by now. Don't you have anything to say to him?"

Momo shifted his gaze to Ryoma, whose head was down, his face blank. However, he didn't miss the exhaustion in those golden eyes that were no longer as brilliant as he remembered them.

"Ranking matches are going to start early tomorrow, Arai. You wouldn't want to be late, right?" Momo said, grinning brightly but practically pushing Arai towards the school gate.

"Momo, the brat's your best friend, isn't he? Knock some sense into him!" With one last glare at Ryoma, Arai reluctantly walked off, leaving the two alone.

"Listen, Echizen..."

Before Momo could speak any further, Ryoma walked off without looking back.

"Echizen? Oi!"

---

"Tadaima." Ryoma quietly announced to the dimly lit living room. The orange rays from the setting sun passed through the gap between the curtain, the only source of light until he flicked the light switch on the wall. As soon as the lights were on, the faint thump of footsteps resounded from the stairs as his Himalayan spotted cat came running to him and jumped right into his arms.

"Karupin..." He caught the ball of warm fluff and started scratching the back of its ears. He shifted its weight to one arm while he took his shoes off one after another with his free hand. After placing them on the rack he headed straight for his room.

As soon as he got in, he released his cat and collapsed on the bed. A sigh unconsciously escaped his lips, and as if Karupin had heard it, the cat promptly jumped onto the bed and snuggled close to its master. Ryoma, who was already half asleep, hugged Karupin close as he curled up, and dozed off.

---

_Ryoma didn't know when, but at some point, the feeling of smooth bed sheets suddenly changed into that of slightly ticklish blades of grass. Suddenly, his nose was filled with the scent of leaves. It should've been evening by now, since it was already dusk by the time he got home and fell asleep, but strangely enough, he could feel the sun's warm rays behind his closed eyelids. _

_"I knew I'd find you here..."_

_He knew that voice well, but refused to open his eyes. He could hear the rhythmic thumping of tennis balls from the distance and the sound was so soothing it almost felt like a lullaby. Ah yes, sleep. That was what he came here for and that was what he intended to do. If the person who just came wouldn't start nagging and let him be, anyway._

_"You nap too much. Geez, just like an old man." _

_The sound of footsteps slowed down and came to a halt. He heard a soft rustling of grass and assumed that the other person must have lay down as well. He was about to drift off once more before he felt something- or someone- poking his nose. _

_"Mmm... Cut it out..." He groaned and turned the other way. He curled up, hoping to get more sleep. That, however, made the other person burst into laughter._

_"I guess your odd habit of sleeping too much is the only thing that makes you like an old man. The rest of you is still a little kid, huh." _

_"I_ am _a kid. " He mumbled drowsily. "Now get lost."_

_The other person just laughed even harder. _

_Neither of them spoke afterwards, and Ryoma was just about to drift off once more before the other person started talking again._

_"Ne, Ryoma... Practice is fun, isn't it? Who would've thought training with your greatest rival could be this much fun... But of course, playing against you during official matches is still the best." _

_"Mm..." Ryoma muttered sleepily. _

_"But... I guess moments like this aren't so bad too." He sighed. _

_Ryoma suddenly felt that the back of his shirt was lightly grabbed. _

_"Ne, Ryoma, promise me something. If one of us decides to quit playing, we'll still remain friends, okay? Even if that's where we started, I don't want tennis to be the only reason for our friendship. Could you promise me that? Huh?" The other person tugged on his shirt._

_When Ryoma remained quiet, he felt his shirt being tugged a little harder. _

_"Hey..."_

_Ryoma sighed and opened his eyes, giving up on the idea of sleep. "Kevin, that's stupid." He said, looking up at the sky._

_"What!? Hey! I was being serious here, you know!?" The blond fumed. "You're one of the closest friends I've ever had. I just... I just wanted to make sure we'll always be friends." _

_Ryoma kept his gaze up at the blue vastness with a nonchalant face. _

_"That's why I'm saying it's stupid. Why do you still have to make sure of things like that?" _

_"Forget it..." _

_When Ryoma turned to Kevin, all signs of sulking were present on the other's face._

_"Your hand..." Ryoma blinked at Kevin's right hand._

_"Hm?" The blond looked at him inquisitively before raising his own hand and looking at it too. "What about it?"_

_Ryoma reached out and tentatively crossed his little finger over Kevin's._ (2)

_"Hey, what was that for?"_

_Ryoma shrugged. "There was dirt on your finger." He got up, stretched and started to walk towards the tennis courts._

_"... Ha?" _

_As he came closer to the chain-linked fence enclosing the courts, Ryoma felt the wind blowing harder and harder. For some reason, the wind blew so strongly that he was unable to stand before it. Before he could hold on to anything, he felt himself being carried away by the wind._

---

Ryoma woke up feeling small paws lightly clawing at the back of his hand. He noticed that he was breathing heavily, a bead of sweat trickling down his temple. When he opened his eyes, it was already dark, his room lit only by the moonlight coming in through the opened blinds.

"Friend, huh..."

Without thinking, Ryoma took Karupin and hugged it tight until the doorbell rang and his father's voice echoed from the front door.

"Oi, Ryoma! We're back!"

Ryoma wished his father wouldn't yell his name so loudly. The last thing he wanted was for the neighbors- no, _anyone_- to associate him with that perverted monk. After all, nothing good ever came out of being related to that guy. Unless utter humiliation was considered a good thing.

---

The next morning, after whining to his mother about a western style breakfast (again), reciting a mantra to ignore his father who, for some reason, always seemed to harass him exponentially more in the morning, and fighting with Karupin over his cap which couldn't possibly hide half of the scratches the wretched feline inflicted on him, Ryoma was ready to face the new day.

He sat behind the front door and put on his shoes. He then got up and held on to the knob as he announced "Ittekimasu" (3) before opening the door. As soon as he got out of the gate, someone's head seemed to have popped out of nowhere and came right in front of his face.

Ryoma, startled, instinctively stepped backwards. It took a moment before he registered who it was.

"Mo... Momo-senpai."

_'Don't scare me like that...'_ He mentally scolded, scowling at the much taller guy.

"Ohayou!" Momo spoke to him through gritted teeth with a lopsided grin. "Honestly, man, what time do you think it is? How dare you make your senpai wait, eh?"

Before he could prepare himself, Momo got him into a headlock.

"That hurts, Momo-senpai!" Ryoma chided halfheartedly as he struggled to get out of Momo's firm arms. "What are you doing here, anyway?"

"Idiot. What do you think you have a best friend for? Free burgers?" Momo released him and started ruffling his hair.

"I just combed that..." Ryoma pouted, running his fingers through his olive locks.

"Besides, isn't it kind of lonely going to school alone?" Momo said as he took his bike and got on. "Oi, hop on. I don't want to waste my energy running extra laps for coming late the morning of the ranking matches."

Ryoma smirked. Without much thought, he leapt onto his usual place on Momo's bike… just like he used to.

"All right, hold on tight. Let's go!"

As they sped off to school, Ryoma felt the wind rush to his face and brush across his cheeks. He closed his eyes, relishing the sensation. Slowly, he started to realize he had also missed riding along on Momo's bike. When he opened his eyes, he looked down on the spikey mop of dark hair and a smile crept on his lips.

No matter what lay ahead, no matter where the wind took them, as long as he kept moving forward with Momo-senpai and everyone else, everything would be fine… and fun.

---

**To be cotinued…**

* * *

(1) "Tobira no Mukou e", second ending song of Full Metal Alchemist.

(2) For those who watch anime and read manga, you must've come across this (perhaps a lot of times?) already. Crossing little fingers means a promise.

(3) _Ittekimasu_- Usually announced before leaving one's home. Roughly means "I'm going."

**Disclaimers:** Tennis no Oujisama belongs to Konomi Takeshi-sensei.

**Author's Notes:** First of all, a big thanks to _apocadelic_ for encouraging me to post this thing, and to everyone who read for giving it a chance.

Double thanks to dear _arctic draconis_ who continues to patiently beta my lil ficlets.

So, um, this is my first multi-chapter fic for TeniPuri. Gah, and I wanted so bad to put it up in time for Ryoma's birthday, but it looks like I won't make it? I'm still anxious about posting this thing. As I was editing and up until uploading it on ff . net, my heart was going "thump thump". XD I already have an idea where the story is headed. Err… More or less. Please take care of me as I continue to write this little fic. (bows)

Until the next chapter! Please review and let me know what you think of this so far. :D


	2. Chapter 02: Faith

_-x-_

_There's a little bit of warmth always searching for me   
in that arrogant voice. _

_I wasn't able to realize the loneliness you hid   
but I was always grasping onto that hand. _

_When you laugh with that bright voice   
that's more precious to me than anything else (1) _

_-x-_

When they turned left at the next corner, the school's main building came into view, the big round clock on the wall glimmering as it reflected the sunlight. A handful of yawning students were groggily exchanging greetings as they entered the gate. Momo stopped at the main entrance and waited for Ryoma to get off before dismounting his bike and pulling it to where he usually parked it.

"By the way, Echizen. Where did you get those scratches from?" He peered curiously at the younger boy's face.

"Karupin."

"What, you stole the catnip again?" Momo laughed, remembering the time the cat followed its master to school unbeknownst to the younger boy. Back then, when he unwittingly confirmed Ryoma's suspicion that Karupin had indeed followed him (or rather the catnip) to school, he'd been surprised to see the younger boy's hands shaking.

That was the first and only time the usually cool and composed kid looked like he was about to have a nervous breakdown.

"He was playing with my cap this morning." Ryoma corrected. "I wanted to leave early to avoid the rush hour, so when I tried to take it back…"

"Things got pretty violent." Momo finished for him, snorting. The mental image of the little prince of tennis running around, chasing not a ball but a Himalayan spotted cat, was far too amusing.

"I got too used to having it with me, I guess I just forgot I'm not using it anymore."

Ryoma's voice was barely louder than a whisper, but what Momo had heard left him standing in place. As Ryoma continued to walk ahead of him, he suddenly thought that the younger boy's back looked a little tired, as if the bag he was carrying was so heavy. Without thinking he grabbed the collar of Ryoma's black uniform.

"It's too early for first period isn't it? Why don't you come and watch the ranking matches first?"

"But…"

"Don't you want to see how much everyone's improved?"

"But!"

"Come on, I bet everyone would be happy to see you again."

"Momo-senpai, let go! I…"

"My first match is against Fuji-senpai. I bet you'd be interested in watching."

Ryoma sighed, making Momo grin triumphantly as he dragged his poor kouhai along.

When they finally reached the club room, Momo pushed Ryoma towards the door, but it opened before the latter even reached for the knob. With his hands on the kid's petite shoulders, he easily felt it when the younger boy became tense. Following Ryoma's gaze, he instantly spotted who had caused it.

Hazel eyes barely concealed by clear spectacles, Tezuka looked at Ryoma with piercing intensity. Momo felt relieved for not being on the receiving end of that look, and worried that it was being directed at his best friend. He almost wanted to praise the younger boy for not averting his eyes.

"You're not supposed to be here." Tezuka stated plainly.

It was a concise statement, spoken in a soft, albeit stern voice, yet Momo felt like it made something within him snap.

"Bu… Buchou!" His voice came out much louder than he intended but at the moment, he didn't give a damn. He glared at his captain, silently demanding an explanation. However, said captain's eyes were kept on Ryoma as if no one else was there.

Tense silence hung around them until it was broken by the sound of footsteps coming from the club room. Tezuka stepped aside, his face not giving away any clue on how he felt about doing something as un-captain-like as blocking the doorway. Fuji appeared behind him, face graced with his usual smile, a smile that faded a little when his eyes turned to Ryoma.

Momo figured as much. The boy's golden eyes were enough to show how Ryoma felt at the moment. He was silently broken, and seeing him like that was enough to affect anyone, even the tensai who was said to be immune to everything (including their four-eyed team mate's lethal juices).

Fuji's eyes barely met Ryoma's before the younger boy walked away.

"Echizen…" Momo was about to go after his best friend before he felt a hand on his wrist. "Fuji-senpai?"

"It's almost time for the ranking matches. If you go after him now, that would mean letting me win by default."

Momo knew full well that the prodigy didn't like winning that way, and Fuji's gentle smile did little to belie the firmness in his voice. Momo didn't dare to object, after all, this was Fuji Syuusuke and no one in his right mind would go against him. He quietly apologized to Echizen, making a mental note to check on the younger boy later.

Momo sighed. Satisfied, Fuji grinned brightly before turning his attention to their captain. "Tezuka, wasn't that a little harsh?"

Though Fuji's eyes rivaled the color of the clear morning sky, Momo mused that it held nothing of its gentleness and serenity. The way the shorter boy looked at Tezuka was just as intense as the way Tezuka had looked at Echizen earlier, if not more so. Momo felt the atmosphere around them starting to grow tense.

"He should understand why." Tezuka replied curtly, meeting Fuji's gaze evenly.

"His eyes clearly told me what exactly it was that he understood. I wonder if that was what you were trying to tell him."

Before he blinked, Momo could've sworn that Tezuka's eyes widened slightly. But when he opened his eyes again, the captain's expression was no different from before. Seeing Tezuka show even the slightest emotion was rare, and whether he imagined it or not was a question he knew would bug him for a long time.

Without a word, Tezuka walked towards the courts. Fuji didn't bother to go after him, which Momo thought was too bad, really, since Fuji's question also piqued his interest. He was just thinking he might've figured out what the mysterious tensai meant when he realised his hand had gone numb.

"Um… Fuji-senpai. My wrist."

"Right. Sorry." Fuji grinned sheepishly before letting go.

Looking at Fuji's retreating back as the prodigy sauntered towards the courts, Momo mused that for someone who looked so delicate, Fuji had a surprisingly strong grip.

---

Step. Step. Step.

The way the sound of his footsteps echoed as he climbed the stairs told Ryoma that he had indeed come too school a little too early. The corridors were empty and seemed a lot bigger than usual without the students that usually filled them. Most of the students were still in their club activities, and those who didn't belong to a club, like him, probably weren't even at school yet. When he finally reached the landing, he turned left and headed for his classroom.

He was just about to open the door when he heard voices coming from inside the room. He wouldn't have been bothered by it if he hadn't heard his name. The boisterous laughter and the rudeness in their voices as they spoke was enough to call his attention.

// "Oh, come on, man. Just admit that you're bitter because the little runt beat you in getting the top rank for the entrance exam." //

// "Yeah right. That was just pure luck. I bet he had to give up tennis to get that score." //

// "Come to think of it, he didn't play in last year's Open, right? Too much tennis probably made his brain rot so he had to quit to recover." //

// "You'll see. There's no way I'm going to lose to someone who's got no masculine pride. I mean, just look at him, he's so short and cute, just like a girl!" //

// "Oh, I know! Why don't we hit on him? Maybe that way he'll let us copy his answers." //

// "Assuming he doesn't beat us up with his racquet first." //

Another round of laughter followed.

Not feeling up to facing morons so early in the morning, Ryoma decided to take a detour and headed for the rooftop.

Three years ago, he'd go up there whenever something happened or he just wanted to take a nap during lunch break. That place had already become his little sanctuary, because no one would bother him there. He just hoped it was one thing that hadn't changed.

He closed his eyes at the gentle wind that greeted him as he opened the rooftop door. After looking around, he sighed, relieved that no one was there. He closed the door behind him and strolled off to his usual spot before dropping his bag and settling on the ground, using his bag as a makeshift pillow.

Looking up at the sky, he watched as the wisps of clouds idly passed. The lazy motion was quite hypnotic, helping him block out a lot of the things on his mind. The clouds, coupled with the sound of the wind, was all too relaxing that it made his eyelids feel a little… heavy.

---

Momo was munching on his fourth bread roll when he finally reached the ichinen trio's classroom. He was surprised when they told him that Ryoma wasn't in the same class as them anymore, as the boy was in class A. He was doubly surprised when they followed it up by saying Ryoma had actually topped the high school entrance exams.

What surprised him most, however, was when he went to Ryoma's classroom only to find out that the boy was absent. That couldn't be true, unless the younger boy had decided to play hooky- something the little genius had never done before. That, or the Echizen Ryoma that rode along on his bike and the Echizen Ryoma in class 1-A were two different people sharing exactly the same name.

While looking for Ryoma, he once again remembered the incident involving Karupin. He imagined how the boy must have felt, looking around for something so small in such a large campus and at the same time thinking of the worst possible scenarios. Momo shook the thoughts out of his head.

Worrying would just make him hungry, and that wouldn't do unless he wanted to spend the rest of his allowance for the week on more bread rolls.

"Hoi? What ya doing, Momo?"

Momo blinked. He hadn't realized that he'd already reached the seniors' floor. One glance at the nameplate situated above the doorframe told him that he was right in front of Eiji's classroom.

"Yo! Eiji-senpai, did you happen to see Echizen?"

"Ochibi?" Eiji turned to Fuji questioningly, who looked back at him with an equally curious expression. "No. Why, did something happen?"

"Ah, well…"

"Eiji!" Momo jumped at the loud call from behind him.

"Ah, oh, hi there Momo." Oishi grinned before walking towards his doubles partner. Momo tailed behind him.

"Did you guys see Tezuka? There were some things I wanted to discuss with him about this afternoon's lineup."

"So Tezuka is missing too, huh?" Eiji pondered out loud, earning an inquisitive frown from Oishi.

"What do you mean, Eiji?

"Ochibi is also missing, nya."

"Eh? Where could those two be…?"

Momo struggled to bite back his laughter at seeing Oishi's worried expression. The vice captain was switching to his Mother Mode again. Signs of panic were beginning to appear before Eiji came to his side and grabbed his arm.

"Now, now, it's okay, Oishi. I'll help you look them." With Eiji leading his doubles partner, the Golden Pair wandered off down the corridor.

"Interesting… I wonder if it's just a coincidence." Fuji rubbed his chin, chuckling. He turned towards the window and leaned on the grill, lazily watching the students playing soccer on the field. Momo turned to leave, but just as he was about to walk away, he heard Fuji's voice again.

"That aside… Momo, I was a little disappointed with our match this morning. Too bad, since you were my first opponent I was really looking forward to a good match."

He didn't understand why, but somehow, he felt relieved that Fuji was looking the other way as he spoke. He couldn't imagine what sort of expression Fuji might have had at that moment, but those words certainly sent a chill down his spine. He had to think of a way out of the situation. Fast.

"Were you bothered about what happened this morning?" Fuji looked sideways at him, smiling. He couldn't decipher the meaning behind the kind of smile he was seeing, but it somehow wiped out the need to come up with an excuse before he even started to think of one.

"Yeah… I just don't understand why Buchou had to do that. You saw it too, didn't you? How much it affected Echizen."

Fuji turned his gaze back to the view outside the window as he spoke. "Ne Momo, if, for example, you developed a life threatening allergy of burgers…"

"Fu… Fuji-senpai!" Momo gaped.

"That's why I said _if, for example_, ne?" Fuji reiterated, grinning innocently. "If that were to happen, and you passed by a burger joint on your way home… Tell me, Momo, how would you feel seeing all those people inside eating burgers with such happy faces?"

"I…" Momo paused, thinking. It didn't take a minute for him to figure out what Fuji meant. His eyes widened slightly, realization dawning on him. "Oh. I see."

Momo had to admit that the mistake was on his part. It was pretty selfish of him, dragging Ryoma to the tennis courts where everyone could play to their heart's content. It was a pretty insensitive thing to do to someone who wanted to play more than anyone else but could only watch from the side.

"Fuji-senpai, Echizen, he… hasn't given up on tennis, has he?"

"The Echizen I know wouldn't do that."

Fuji looked straight into his eyes, smiling serenely. Momo mused it was the first time he had seen those blue eyes open without them unnerving him. He almost wanted to take back what he'd thought of them earlier, because if Fuji really wanted to, his eyes could reflect not just the sky's color after all, but its gentleness as well.

"Don't think badly of our captain, Momo. Tezuka couldn't and wouldn't purposely hurt Echizen."

_'None of us can.'_ Momo added as an afterthought, nodding. He grinned, feeling his usual cheerfulness bounce back. He hurriedly thanked Fuji before sauntering down the corridor.

When Momo reached the stairs, he smacked his forehead as soon as a thought struck him, earning him strange looks from the students around him. There was only one place Ryoma went during lunch breaks, and that place should have crossed his mind before. Now that he thought about it, that place should have been on the top of his list.

He headed for the stairs leading to the rooftop but the door opened before he'd climbed the first step. Unfortunately, it wasn't Ryoma who came in but the last person he expected to find there. Perhaps the person who he least wanted to see at the moment as well, because seeing someone whom he'd just thought ill of was kind of awkward.

"Buchou." He bowed slightly.

Tezuka acknowledged and returned the gesture before trotting down the stairs and passing him wordlessly. Momo looked back and briefly followed Tezuka's retreating form with his eyes until he saw the captain meet with Oishi and Eiji. He resumed his climb and upon opening the rooftop door, the first thing he saw was the boy he'd been searching for, sound asleep.

He briefly wondered what the captain had been doing up there, and throughout the entire lunch break if Oishi had been looking for him for that long. Shrugging, he decided to ignore it. That was between Tezuka and Echizen. He closed the door and walked towards the younger boy.

"Echizen." He poked the boy's pale cheek. When he didn't get any response he poked some more, and he kept poking and poking until he earned an annoyed groan from the younger boy.

"Go away…" Ryoma weakly slapped his hand, turning over grumpily. The action seemed to cause him pain, as he winced and abruptly sat up. "Ow…"

"Echizen? What's wrong?" He eyed the younger boy curiously.

Momo's question was answered when Ryoma reached inside his pocket and pulled out a tennis ball. They boy groggily blinked at the offending ball then promptly threw a glare at him. "Funny way to wake someone up, Momo-senpai."

"O… oi, it wasn't me!"

Ryoma looked at him suspiciously, his eyes searching. Burning twin orbs glistened like the sun but Momo stood firm and tried hard not to blink. When it looked like the younger boy was finally convinced that he didn't do it, those golden eyes softened ever so slightly.

"But who could've left it here? I was the only one… Momo-senpai, was someone else up here?"

Looking at Ryoma's puzzled expression made Momo chuckle. That clueless face always seemed to make the boy look younger than he really was. It made him look somewhat… cute.

"Well?"

Momo snapped out of his thoughts upon hearing Ryoma's voice. "Hm? Ah! That's right."

"What is?"

"I think I know who put it there." Momo put on his usual goofy grin.

"Who?"

Momo got up and held out his hand towards Ryoma. "Lunch break's almost over, let's go back in."

Ryoma blinked at him, eyes silently chiding him for his poor attempt at changing the subject.

Knowing that Ryoma wouldn't accept it, Momo withdrew his hand and walked towards the rooftop door. Without looking back, he offered an explanation, hoping to pacify his irritated kouhai. "It would be meaningless if I tell you who it was. Besides, I'm sure you'll figure it out in no ti… Ow!"

Momo suddenly felt something hit his head. The pain quickly reduced to a dull throbbing as he rubbed the spot. He looked back just in time to see Echizen catching the ball in his palm, and the action easily changed Momo's eyes from glaring into widening with amazement.

"Don't even start if you're not planning to finish what you were going to say." Ryoma scowled before pushing him out of the way and exiting the rooftop.

Smirking, Momo called after him. "It's bugging you, isn't it?"

"As if!"

The way Ryoma retorted in obvious annoyance just made Momo laugh.

---

Ryoma scowled. Despite what he'd said, the tennis ball did bother him all day, enough to divert his attention from the afternoon lessons. Long after the last class ended, his mind still wandered to the rather conspicuous lump in his pocket as he made his way to the library with a much taller pile of books compared to the day before.

It wasn't as though he hadn't figured out who did it. In fact, he was quite positive that it could only be that person he had in mind. What was bothering him wasn't the 'who' but more of the 'why' behind it.

When he got to the library, he was just about to put down the books to open the door when he felt something hit his head, causing him to lose his hold on the books, scattering them all over. The spot that was hit ached for a bit before the pain turned to a dull throbbing. Rubbing his head, he couldn't help but think of what he did to Momo earlier.

_'Must be divine punishment.'_

He bent down to pick up the books one by one, brushing dirt off of them. As he reached for the fourth book a girl came running towards him and bowed, apologizing profusely. "A… Are you okay? I'm so sorry. I really didn't mean it. I… I think I hit the ball too hard and so..."

"I'm fine." He said dismissively as he picked up and dusted off the last book. From the corner of his eye, he saw the girl also pick up her tennis ball. He got up and looked at who it was. She wore a white cap, her long hair neatly fixed into two braids. Her eyes widened upon meeting Ryoma's gaze.

"R… Ryoma-kun…"

Ryoma blinked, thinking back whether he had seen her somewhere before, and if so, when and where. His attempt to remember was halted when he suddenly felt the weight of the books in his arms. It looked like the girl had noticed it too, for she hurriedly opened the door for Ryoma.

"Doumo." Ryoma nodded and stepped in. He looked back when the door shut behind him, but the girl was no longer in sight. Thinking that she might have gone back to practice, Ryoma proceeded to deliver the books to the librarian and attend to his library duties.

Just one more section and he would have been finished and able to go home, but as luck would have it, just when most of the books he had to put back belonged to the top shelf, the stepladder had to be broken. As if that wasn't enough, the books were also hardbound, making things doubly difficult.

It was time do what the most sensible thing a person- short person- would do in such a situation. He stood on his tiptoes, stretching his arms as much as he could. Too bad he was still a couple of centimeters too short.

Pouting, he decided he wouldn't let that stop him. He was never one to give up. After all, being stubborn to the point of idiocy sometimes paid off when it actually made him win his tennis matches…

The thought unconsciously made him clutch the book tighter. He took a deep breath, trying to shake it from his mind, before getting back to the task at hand. _'That's it. Higher. Just a little bit more and…'_

Someone took the book from his hand and placed it on the top shelf, at the exact spot he was aiming for. He turned around to face his helper, and was about to thank that person when he felt his entire body freeze. The hazel eyes that met his gaze weren't any less intense than he remembered seeing earlier that morning.

He took a deep breath surreptitiously. Clenching his fist in an attempt to steady himself, he bowed slightly. "Thank you. Sorry for the trouble."

Tezuka nodded. "Give me all the books that belong to the top shelf. I'll put them back for you."

"But…"

"This library has only one stepladder and it's broken, Echizen. How else do you plan to put back those books?"

Ryoma inwardly cringed. It was just like Tezuka to exude an aura of authority even outside of the tennis court. Somehow, the older boy gave the impression that if Ryoma disobeyed, he would find himself running laps inside the library.

"Ha… Hai."

Neither of them spoke as they returned the books to their proper locations. For some reason, Ryoma didn't find the silence unsettling. If anything, it made him feel comfortable and… safe.

"Is that all of it?" Tezuka asked when he finished putting up all the books Echizen handed to him.

"Yes. Thank you so much for your help." He bowed at his waist.

"If that's all, I'll be on my way now."

Before he realized what he was doing, Ryoma held on to Tezuka's sleeve. His hand seemed to have moved on its own, surprising even himself at what he'd done. But what's done is done and Ryoma didn't have any plans to turn back.

He paused for a while. His grip on the dark fabric tightened before he decided to throw hesitation out the window. "Aren't you going to ask why?"

Ryoma was sure they both knew what he was talking about. He was still unprepared to talk to anyone about what had happened that led him to stop playing tennis, that much he was sure of, but if it was to this person he knew that he would force himself to speak if he had to. He trusted Tezuka that much.

When Tezuka didn't answer for what seemed like a whole minute, Ryoma started to worry. Feeling a little dejected, his hold on Tezuka' sleeve loosened. He was just about to let go when the older boy finally spoke.

"You have a reason, don't you? That's enough for me to believe in. In time, I know you will tell me- all of us- about it, when you're ready."

Ryoma felt as though a heavy fog that had engulfed his heart had dissipated. He felt his tense shoulders relax as he finally let go. As soon as he did so, Tezuka started to walk away.

"Buchou" Ryoma called out to him, momentarily stopping Tezuka in his tracks. "Is it okay if I still call you that?"

Tezuka looked back, looking into his eyes as though searching for something. Hazel eyes softened and the usually stern face broke into a smile. Just as his words lifted the fog off Ryoma's heart, the captain's smile replaced it with warmth.

Ryoma gave back a small smile of his own, before he moved to catch up with him. Walking with Tezuka side by side felt nostalgic, but unlike his memories associated with tennis which he wanted to block out, it gave him a rather pleasant feeling. Together, they exited of the library.

When they got out, Ryoma hadn't expected to see Momo, Eiji, Oishi and Fuji waiting for them. Eiji promptly ran to cuddle him before Momo came in and joined the hugging binge, and it took only a few seconds before Oishi tried to pry them off, fearing they might smother him. Behind them, he noticed Fuji looking at Tezuka, wearing a meaningful smile.

"What is it, Fuji?"

"Nothing. It's just, Oishi said you went to the library to do your math homework. I was just wondering why it took you half an hour to finish something that, according to Inui's data, usually takes you just five minutes."

_-x-_

_If we begin to walk, even slowly is okay   
don't turn back; just face forward.   
If we're able to run, even just a little   
I want you to feel your forgotten wings_

_Don't go astray anymore. (1) _

_-x-_

* * *

**To be continued…**

(1) Lines quoted from Tezuka's song "Road", from his album entitled "With". Translations credited to _moonsalute_.

A/N: So sorry for the late update (shrinks) I wanted to update sooner, but I had trouble writing this chapter down. Even though I already knew what to write, actually writing it proved to be ten times harder. Please bear with me, I'm also writing this fic as I post (sweatdrops).

Please send your hugs and kisses to _arctic draconis_ for beta-reading :D

Comments and constructive criticisms are always welcome. Please continue to guide me as I write this fic. :D


	3. Chapter 03: Drifter

_-x-_

_As I walk through the dark street, the cruel winter wind blows harder_

_It's late in the night and I have nowhere else to go_

_In the distance, I see a lighted window_

_It glimmers, as if beckoning me to come closer_

_When I get there and knock on the door, will you be there to open it and let me in? _

_-x-_

_He was floating on mist, if that was even possible. Ryoma couldn't think of any other way to describe it. It was like being carried along with the flow of water, only the 'river' he was floating on top of was lighter… denser. _

_Suddenly, it felt like a hole opened in the 'river' and he fell right through it. He started sinking deeper and deeper. His heart skipped a beat when he realized that, as though he was really drowning, breathing had become difficult. _

_He wanted to look for something to hold on to, but he couldn't open his eyes. He wanted to scream for help, but his voice wouldn't come out. He wanted to reach out, but his arm felt too heavy. _

_He kept floating. Drifting. Sinking. _

_Even though his eyes were already closed to begin with, it still felt as if it was getting darker and darker. The darkness was closing in on him and weighing him down. He was sinking deeper and there was nothing he could do. _

…_Until warmth engulfed his hand as if someone had held on to him. _

_The warmth spread throughout his palm and to the back of his hand. The feeling climbing up his arm, seeping into his chest and soon, his entire body felt warm again. The mysterious warmth cradled him and gently pulled him up until he was floating in the 'river' again. _

_He still couldn't open his eyes, his arm still felt numb, and his entire body still felt weak. But, somehow, the darkness felt more comfortable, lulling him to sleep. As his consciousness faded, he heard a voice. _

_//Ryoma//_

_It sounded familiar, but the way it called his name was not. _

---

It wasn't as shrill as his alarm clock, but Karupin's voice was loud enough to nudge Ryoma from his half-awake state. He rolled over, hoping to bargain more sleep, but Karupin wouldn't have it. The little creature openly protested by lightly clawing at Ryoma's shoulder and meowing louder.

"All right, all right, I'm up." Ryoma sighed, sitting up reluctantly.

_'That dream again…' _He thought, trying to blink sleep off his eyes. It was indeed a strange dream, but it made him feel nostalgic. It was like he'd already had the exact same dream before.

He stretched, then turned to Karupin and scratched his cat's favorite spot behind the ears, mumbling "Ohayou" while yawning. With half lidded eyes, he looked around the room and absently wondered why it was so darn bright that early in the morning. He got off the bed and practically sleepwalked to the kitchen, Karupin following closely at his heels.

The house seemed strangely quiet. Ryoma briefly wondered why before his question was answered as he looked around the house and found that no one was there. And when his dad wasn't around, even if everyone else was, the house was usually a lot more peaceful.

At least, the table was already set and breakfast was ready. His mood brightened when he saw that it was a Japanese style meal- including his favorite, grilled fish. Now all he had to do was eat, take a shower and head for school.

He poured some milk and cat food for Karupin before taking a bottle of milk for himself. When he closed the refrigerator's door, he noticed three notes pinned by tiny fruit-shaped magnets. The first two were most likely from his mother and Nanako, which he could easily tell from the neat handwriting and the third utterly messy one was undoubtedly his dad's.

_//Aunt Rinko, I'm leaving early for a meeting. I made breakfast already so please just reheat it later. I hope Ryoma-san likes it. -Nanako//_

_//Darling, I'm going out to buy some groceries. Make sure Ryoma doesn't oversleep._

_Sweetie, your friend called this morning. He can't drop by to pick you up because of an errand he had to run. For today, just ride the train to school. We have your favorite for breakfast, so eat a lot, okay? -Mom//_

_//Ryoma, I'm going to the temple. You're a big boy now, wake up by yourself and don't be late!//_

Ryoma's eyes widened at the third note. One glance at the wall clock told him that he only had ten minutes before the school bell rang. Forgetting all about the breakfast he was really looking forward to, he practically flew to his room to get changed.

"Ultra stupid Dad!"

The previously merrily chirping birds were quick to take flight at the angry scream.

---

As his luck would have it, the platforms were swarming with people all quietly irritated and impatient to get to wherever they were going. Such was the joy of rush hour that Ryoma tried to avoid as much as he could. Today, however, his alarm clock seemed to hate him for no apparent reason, and decided it was up to him to wake up, either that, or it had gone off and he just hadn't heard it. But he'd swear the clock hating him was more likely.

Since he was in a hurry to get to school and the train wasn't being cooperative, he decided to take the bus. Apparently, the bus also didn't have any plans to help him get to school on time. He was starting to suspect that his dad was behind some secret conspiracy to make him late for his class.

Left with no other choice, he ended up signaling for a cab. Expensive as it was, he had to bear with it if he wanted to maintain his spot at the academic rankings. He felt a smirk crawl on his lips at the thought of demanding an increase in allowance from his dad as payback.

With a meager five minutes left, Ryoma felt relieved as they turned a corner and the street began to look familiar to him. At the cab's speed, he could make it to the school gates before the first bell and have a couple more minutes to spare. Scratch that. Rather, it was a couple more minutes to run to his classroom.

From a short distance, he could already see the fish store where Momo would occasionally buy from on their way home. Outside, he noticed a coffee-colored cat rummaging through the trash bin, probably looking for something to eat. He wondered what Karupin was doing at home.

As they approached the store, the door opened and the owner came out. He angrily shooed away the cat, making the feline jump to the road. That was the last thing Ryoma saw before the car swerved abruptly, the movement sending the car round in a sharp curve, before the driver got it back under control and they screeched to a halt.

At the back of his mind, he was vaguely aware that the car had already stopped. He wasn't feeling pain anywhere, so he was probably uninjured, but somehow, he couldn't move. He wasn't unconscious. On the contrary, he was wide awake, and yet, it felt like he had lost touch with his surroundings.

His sight was starting to go in and out of focus. The driver was looking back at him, lips moving, but he couldn't seem to make out the words. What was supposed to be the driver's voice was drowned out by sounds within his head- that of breaks screeching, a familiar voice yelling his name, and the siren of an ambulance that wasn't even there.

Ryoma squeezed his eyes shut, trying to repel unwanted memories that were beginning to resurface. The harder he tried to drive them away, the more the visions pushed their way in behind his closed eyelids. Visions of blurry lights, shards of glass everywhere, and blood... So much blood.

He jolted when he felt someone roughly shaking him. He wasn't sure when, but at one point, he seemed to have wrapped his arms around himself. It was perfectly understandable, because, at the moment, he felt as though a bucket of iced water had been poured all over him.

Slowly, Ryoma started to register what had happened. The door was open, the driver already standing right beside him. He caught sight of the fish store's owner standing behind the driver looking both terrified and worried.

"Sir, are you all right? Should I take you to the hospital?"

"I'm fine." He practically breathed out, his voice coming out barely louder than a whisper.

"But you're shaking." The driver protested, his voice laden with guilt. Although Ryoma had said he was okay, the man continued to look at his young passenger doubtfully.

"I'm fine." Ryoma reiterated. "More importantly, could you check if the cat's okay?"

"Ah! Right."

The driver scampered off to look for the cat, the fish store's owner following closely behind. However, the feline was nowhere in sight. Ryoma could only hope that the little one was safe.

As the two were busy looking for the missing feline, he swiftly left some bills then snuck out of the cab. He walked into an alley and he was barely halfway to the other end when his knees gave in. Totally drained, he leaned on the wall and decided he might as well stay hidden until the cab left. After what just happened, he was sure that he wouldn't be able to stand riding in a car again. Not today, nor anytime soon.

Hoping that his lessons would help him block certain unpleasant things out of his mind, he forced himself to walk. Though his legs still felt a bit wobbly, he managed to make it to the exit without tripping. He slammed into someone as soon as he stepped out of the alley, landing gracelessly on his butt.

"Fsssshu! Watch where you're going, ki… Echizen?"

Ryoma didn't have to look up from his awkward position on the ground to know who it was. If anything, that trademark hiss was already a dead giveaway. He pushed himself up and brushed dirt off his pants.

"Ohayou, Kaidoh-senpai." He scowled halfheartedly at the other teen for bumping into him. "No club practice today?"

The nicknamed Viper glared at him, hissing. Ryoma mused that his senpai's face looked as scary as ever. Kaidoh looked like he was returning the scowl tenfold.

"Practice finished early, so I did a few more laps. What about you, still late as always?"

"Che. It's just today." The younger boy pouted.

Feeling as though he had bounced back even just a little bit, Ryoma offered a small smile at his former teammate. "Kaidoh-senpai, mind if I jog with you?"

"You don't look like you're in the condition to."

Ryoma was taken aback by the comment. That was the last thing he expected to hear. Then again, he was still feeling a bit shaky. Maybe it wasn't so surprising that Kaidoh had noticed.

Not wanting to discuss the matter, Ryoma headed off to school. Kaidoh seemed to pick up on this, falling into step without asking anymore questions as they ran side by side. Both of them were relieved to have reached the school gates before the first bell rang.

---

When lunchtime came, the cafeteria was as crowded as ever. Not that it mattered anyway, because lately, Ryoma didn't have much of an appetite. So instead of getting lunch, he decided to head for the rooftop.

The corridors, as usual, were noisy and over-crowded. As he made his way through his fellow freshmen and past the occasional senior, one of the doors he was passing by slid open. Before he knew it, his arm had been grabbed and he was pulled into the room.

The door closed behind him, leaving him in the chemistry lab, being peered at rather closely (too closely really) by thick, square glasses. The much taller man nodded to himself, muttering inaudibly as he jotted down notes and continued to examine the dumbfounded boy. When he finally seemed satisfied, the bespectacled senior closed his green notebook with a snap.

"It's been a while, Echizen. It's nice to see you again."

"R… Right. Same to you, Inui-senpai." Ryoma bowed slightly.

"Your hair has grown slightly longer, your complexion is fairer, and you've gotten thinner. Unfortunately, your height hasn't improved at all. You are still the shortest student among the freshmen. Are you sure you're drinking two bottles of milk a day like I told you to?"

Ryoma nodded honestly.

"Kaidoh's right. You do look a bit pale. It's not that visible but there are circles under your eyes. Have you been having trouble sleeping?"

"…Yes."

"And from the looks of it, you don't have an appetite either. Otherwise, you wouldn't be spending your lunch break napping on the rooftop all the time."

That Inui still knew so much about him made Ryoma wonder if his senpai was really just collecting data or had already progressed to stalking his subjects. The mere thought of it made him shudder. He was starting to feel sorry for his former teammates.

"Inui-senpai, I really appreciate it, but why are you still doing this? I'm… not part of the team anymore."

"I'm doing this as a favor for a friend." Inui replied offhandedly as he strolled towards one of the tables and grabbed a beaker containing a peculiar brown substance. "Come, I made a special drink for you."

"Um… Thanks." Ryoma gulped, but took the mysterious concoction anyway, eyeing it warily. "What's this?"

"It's similar to the relaxation drink I make for the third year regulars. It helps lessen stress from balancing time between club activities and the upcoming entrance exams."

"I see…" Ryoma blinked at the liquid. "Did Kaidoh-senpai ask you to make this for me?"

"No."

"…Oh."

"Fuji did."

Ryoma's head shot up. "Ha?"

"He said he noticed you've been looking tired since the first day of school." Inui explained casually, fixing his glasses.

"Hmmm… It's just like Fuji-senpai to be so observant."

Ryoma absently twirled the beaker, careful enough not to let a single drop of the liquid in it spill. Somehow, he couldn't bring himself to raise his eyes. He felt lucky to have such caring seniors, yet a little puzzled about why they continued to watch over him as though he was still their responsibility.

"Oh… That's right, you don't bring a water bottle with you anymore."

_'He even knows that!?'_ Ryoma cringed. Inui was starting to unnerve him. _'Ladies and gentlemen, allow me to present Exhibit A, supporting that Inui-senpai is a stalker.'_

Inui unzipped his tennis bag then took out his own water bottle. He walked to the sink to empty and wash it, before taking the beaker from Ryoma and pouring it into the now empty bottle. "Use mine for now. Just return it to me after you've finished this new version of Inui Juice I made for you."

"Thanks. I… I'll be sure to drink it." If it's edible enough, Ryoma followed as an afterthought.

"Oh, and I flavored it after your favorite- chocolate." Inui smirked.

_'And there you have it, Exhibit B.' _

Ryoma felt like crying. He wasn't sure if he had imagined it or not, but for a split second, it looked like Inui's square glasses glinted maliciously. He was ready to dash out of the lab as soon as possible.

---

By the time afternoon classes were over, Ryoma had more or less gotten over the morning's almost accident. He wasn't feeling shaky anymore, and focusing on his lessons helped him to forget unwelcome flashbacks. There was just one thing left to do before going home.

He looked cautiously at the water bottle in his hand. He took a deep breath, readying himself to gulp the eerie liquid in one go. But each time he held the bottle to his lips, he'd find his head dropping in defeat with a sigh.

He had been repeating the same drill for over five minutes now. He was just thankful that no one had come into the bathroom, as it wasn't exactly the best place for breathing exercises. The reason he chose that place was simple- it was the most convenient and least embarrassing place to throw up, if his stomach decided to protest.

To drink, or not to drink? That was the question. On one hand, Ryoma wanted to finish it so he could return Inui's sports bottle as soon as possible. Yet, previous experience had taught him that Inui's originally concocted juices were healthy for all parts of the body except the human tongue.

Mustering up his courage one more time- and perhaps one last time, if he didn't make it- Ryoma inhaled sharply and held the water bottle tighter. But just when he had already made up his mind, someone barged into the men's room, making the water bottle slip from his hold. It was only by sheer reflex that he managed to catch it.

Inside the cubicle, Ryoma heard rapid footfalls slow to a halt. It was soon followed by the sound of running water and rubbing fabric. It lingered for almost a whole minute, before the faucet handle squeaked shut.

"I should've been more careful. Now this is going to leave a stain." Whined the guy outside the cubicles.

Ryoma's eyes widened. He couldn't be mistaken. He knew that voice.

Forgetting all about his earlier dilemma, Ryoma unlocked the cubicle's door and tentatively stepped out. As soon as he did so, the new entrant turned in his direction. The guy looked surprised at first, before his face broke into a smile.

"Echizen! It's so nice to see you again."

"Same to you, Kawamura-senpai." Ryoma grinned back.

His smile faded when he noticed that Kawamura was wearing gym clothes in place of the expected tennis club's blue and white jersey. In his hands he held an apron with a yellowish orange blotch. It was wet, and was probably what Kawamura had been trying to wash while Ryoma was inside the cubicle.

_'Oh… that's right.'_

Ryoma remembered that Kawamura had mentioned way back in junior high that he wouldn't play tennis in high school. He had already decided to focus on honing his culinary skills. He had a new goal now, and that was to strive for their sushi restaurant to become Japan's number one.

"Um, Echizen..." Kawamura spoke, breaking the awkward silence. "If… If it's all right with you, could you do me a favor?"

Ryoma shrugged. "Sure."

Pleased with the favorable response, Kawamura led him to the home economics room. As they wandered down the almost empty corridor, Ryoma wondered why he'd agreed so easily. Looking at Kawamura's innocent expression, he decided to dismiss it.

_'It's Kawamura-senpai. It couldn't be harmful… Right?'_

He looked around after putting his bag and Inui's water bottle on a vacant chair. There wasn't anyone else in the room, and all of the tables were sparkling clean, save for one. On it lay a tray, a rice bowl, sheets of nori, some bottles of rice vinegar and a number of miscellaneous cooking utensils. When they came closer, Ryoma saw what was in the tray.

"Sushi?"

"Yeah." Kawamura stuck his tongue out, grinning sheepishly. "I was just trying out a new recipe, so… um… could you taste it and give me some feedback?"

"All right." So he took one and unflinchingly took a bite. After finishing the whole piece, Ryoma reached a verdict. He gave his senpai a thumbs-up, and was pleased to see it had the desired effect when Kawamura's anxious look eased into a smile.

"It's a little spicy at first, but it soon mingles with the sweet, sour and salty ingredients as you chew. Then it leaves a sweet aftertaste." He elaborated.

"That's good. I was planning to serve that to the tennis club after the upcoming district matches." Kawamura grinned shyly.

"Eh?" Ryoma blinked up at him curiously. "Tennis club? Why?"

" 'Why', you ask… Didn't we always do that before? My dad always closed the shop to hold a victory party for Seigaku, remember?"

"Yes but… You're in a different club now."

Kawamura chuckled. "That may be so… But that doesn't mean we're not friends anymore."

"Friends" Ryoma echoed absently.

"Yup. It's the same for you too, right? You may not be a part of the team anymore, but you're still our precious friend, Echizen."

_'Friend…'_

Ryoma didn't know what to say. For some reason, he was stuck on that word. Yet, as if called, Ryoma's gaze wandered to Inui's water bottle.

Why did Kaidoh mention his condition this morning to Inui?

Why did Fuji request that… drink… for him?

And why did Inui actually bother to make it?

All those questions seemed to point to that single word. What Kawamura said had yet to sink in, but, in a way, Ryoma felt that he was beginning to understand. The more he thought on it, the warmer the feeling in his chest grew.

**To be continued…**

* * *

**A/N:** So sorry for the late update (as usual?) This chapter was a lot harder to write, compared to the previous ones. It's like… the little ideas came to me part by part? So it took a while before the 'little ideas' came together to form one whole chapter.

Anyway, it's not much, but I hope it was worth the wait (sweatdrops). If not, I'm terribly sorry (shrinks) I'll try harder on the succeeding chapters.

There were a lot of parts in this chapter that didn't make sense when I wrote the draft XD so, as usual, please send your thanks to arccie-sensei for beta reading.


	4. Chapter 04: Presentiment

_-x-_

_Each time I look up at the sky where you are_

_I ask the stars why I don't have wings like yours_

_Suddenly I notice something odd about your flying_

_I wonder if one of your wings is hurt?_

_Then, I guess it's better that I'm down here after all_

_That way there'd be someone to catch you if you fall_

_So fly as far and high as you want_

_I'll be right here watching you_

_-x-_

The sound of a ball thumping against the wall made him feel nostalgic. Although the rhythm wasn't quite as steady as he remembered, Ryoma recognised the sound of an activity he'd repeated a thousand times before. He wondered who was practicing the same old drill, until he heard and recognized Kachirou's voice as he got closer.

"80, 81, 82…" Kachirou uttered as the ball hit the wall.

Ryoma leaned against the adjacent wall, closing his eyes as he listened to the voice, the footsteps, the racquet and the ball. From the count and the laboured breathing, it was easy to tell his fellow freshman had been at it for quite a while. Kachirou's footsteps were irregular, most probably due to the boy's timid personality causing him to hesitate before every move.

Ryoma concluded from the swishing sound the other boy's racquet made with each swing that although Kachirou seemed to have overcome the common mistake of using the strength of his wrist rather than his arm, he was still swinging the racquet with more force than control. That was what made the ball rebound from the wall too strongly. But overall, Kachirou had improved. A fact he'd been made aware of when Momo had told him that the boy had been appointed captain last year.

"100! Wah… I finished another round today!" Kachirou practically squealed. "Right. Better go before afternoon practice starts and ah!"

Ryoma heard a soft thump before he saw a ball rolling along the ground. He pushed off from the wall he had been leaning on and went to pick it up. As soon as he got up, he saw Kachirou's surprised expression.

"Ryoma-kun! I didn't know you were here."

"You've gotten better." Ryoma grinned as he handed the ball.

"Thanks." Kachirou blushed.

"But… you still have a lot more to work on." He then told the other boy his earlier observations, which left Kachirou gaping.

"Ryoma-kun… You can tell that much just by listening!?" Kachirou said, eyes wide with awe. "As expected from Ryoma-kun! Why didn't you-"

"I see you're a regular now." Ryoma quickly cut him off, knowing where the question was leading.

Following Ryoma's gaze, Kachirou looked at his jersey. Face torn between embarrassment and a hint of pride, Kachirou enthusiastically recounted how he beat Arai during the ranking matches. With a silly smile, he admitted he'd never expected it and stuck his tongue out.

"I'm not surprised."

Those were three simple words. Ryoma's answer, however, wiped the goofy grin off his face, leaving him stunned. He could only look uncomprehendingly at the prodigy who, unbelievable as it seemed, had also been a freshman regular like he was now.

That thought somehow intimidated Kachirou. _'Of course, if I were compared to Ryoma-kun, the gap is still so...'_

Sighing, Ryoma elaborated. Something he did far too rarely. "Three years ago, you had a match with Arai-senpai, right? Back then, I could already tell that you held more potential than him."

Kachirou stared blankly at Ryoma until the latter's words sank in. Kachirou was confused, he had thought Ryoma hadn't cared to watch that silly match. It was a stupid challenge that ended with them both getting punished for it, but still…

Wait.

Eyes widening, he suddenly remembered that, yes, Ryoma was there. He did watch that match, although the tennis prince never bothered to show himself. Smiling, he sighed. It was just like Ryoma, after all, to secretly, silently, watch over his friends. Just like he did today. Ryoma was never conspicuous about it, but when needed, he never failed to be there.

"Ryoma-kun… Thank you." Kachirou beamed sincerely.

'_You gave me a boost…Now I can believe in myself just a bit more.'_

Faced with such a sincere gratitude, Ryoma shifted uncomfortably. "Aren't you going to be late for practice?"

"Wah! Right, right!" Kachirou hurriedly packed up his things and zipped his tennis bag close. "Ryoma-kun, what were you doing around here? Are you coming to watch this afternoon's practice? That's great! I'm sure everyone will be happy to see you."

"Ah, no, I was just going to return something to Inui-senpai, and then I'll be on my way." Ryoma opened his bag and took out an empty green sports bottle. "This."

"Eh? But that's… What did you need that for?" Though he had the feeling he didn't want to know, Kachirou asked anyway, curiosity getting the better of him.

"He made some new type of Inui Juice for me, but since I don't bring a sports bottle anymore, he let me borrow his."

"And you drank it?"

"Yup."

Kachirou shivered.

"All of it?"

"All of it."

Kachirou gulped. He decided to stop asking. Just the mere thought of Inui juice was enough to make the hair at the back of his neck rise.

"Are you okay?" Ryoma blinked, wondering why Kachriou's face started to look pale.

"Y… yeah. I'm okay. No worries." Kachirou laughed nervously.

As he slung his bag over his shoulder, he looked at Ryoma and said without hesitation, "Ryoma-kun, I'm not as good as you are… But I'll try my best to be deserving of this position. I promise I won't be a burden to our senpais. And… One day, surely, I'll be a worthy rival to you."

The look in his eyes. Those words.

Ryoma froze. He felt his head spin when flashbacks started rushing into his head once again. The way Kachirou's eyes gleamed was exactly like 'that person' who'd said those words.

_// "… but that's not enough. One day, I'll definitely be your one and only rival, Ryoma."//_

"Kachirou, could you give this to Inui-senpai for me?" Without waiting for an answer, Ryoma thrust the sports bottle to the dumbfounded Kachirou and ran off. Kachirou, on the other hand, wondered what kind of emotion it was that he had seen in Ryoma's eyes when the former freshman prodigy heard what he had just said.

Ryoma cursed under his breath. Unwelcome flashbacks were invading his mind again. Worse yet, just when he thought he had overcome the shock of the incident with the cat at the alley, he started feeling the same freezing sensation again.

The things that happened that day started mixing with those that happened in the past, jumbling his mind even more. The stream of unwanted memories was rushing in too fast, making him feel like there was a vortex inside his head. Ryoma clenched his fists when he sensed something acidic building up in his throat.

He hastened his pace and headed straight for the nearest washroom. He mentally patted himself when he got in just in time then promptly threw up. Feeling as though his strength had left him along with everything else he coughed out, he shakily reached for the flush handle and pressed it.

He pushed himself up and stepped out of the cubicle. He walked towards the door and out into the hallway, keeping his hand on the wall for support. Right now, he just wanted to drink water- a lot of it.

But as his luck would have it, there had to be a makeshift sign in front of the water taps that says 'out of order' right when he needed it most. It was at this point that Ryoma started questioning the logic behind the toilet and the water fountain being placed at opposite ends of the hallway. _'Stupid school. Stupid water taps. Stupid…'_

Just when he was thinking of whom else was responsible for such utter absurdity, his vision started going in and out of focus. He wondered if the short walk used up what little strength he had left. Through his blurred eyesight, he saw a blue and white blob moving in the distance.

He wanted to tell the blob to stop moving, because it was making his dizziness worse. But before he had the chance to, everything turned black. The last thought that crossed his mind was _'Stupid blob'_.

---

_The feel of cool water splashing on his face was pure bliss after practice on such a scorching hot day. Ryoma let out a contented sigh, before a towel was shoved on his face. After grumbling a muffled 'thanks', he took the towel and wiped his face dry._

"_You're pissed off about something." Ryoma stated plainly._

"_Hmph." Kevin crossed his arms over his chest. "No, I'm not."_

"_Really, shouldn't I be the one who's sulking? Who was it that dragged me to that interview yesterday anyway?" Ryoma scowled._

_To which Kevin immediately retorted. "Don't talk about that stupid interview! It's what's pissing me off." _

"_Hmmm… I knew it. So you _are_ pissed off."_

"_Of course! I…"_

_Seeing Ryoma's triumphant smirk, Kevin felt thoroughly cheated. Ryoma got him again. After all the years they'd been together, he just couldn't seem to get the hang of his friend's psychological tactics. _

"_Fine. Like I said, it's because of that interview. When the article came out, the reporter labeled me as one of your best rivals."_

_Ryoma's smirk faded._

"_Why…?" _

'_Did you find it insulting?' He bit back the follow-up question and instead rephrased it to "What about it?" _

"_It's not enough…" Kevin looked straight into Ryoma's eyes, and said with clear eyes, free of any doubt. "It may be true at this point but that's not enough. One day, I'll definitely be your one and only rival, Ryoma."_

_Speechless, Ryoma could only meet Kevin's unwavering gaze. His grip on his towel tightened momentarily, before he shoved it into Kevin's face just like the other boy had done to him earlier. "Mada mada da ne…" _

_That was all Ryoma said in his ever soft voice before walking away. By the time Kevin took the towel off his face, Ryoma was already some distance away from him. "Che. What was that for" Kevin pouted. _

_Little did Kevin know that though the voice sounded nonchalant, Ryoma's expression was far from it. The tennis prince had a contented smile on his face. It was a smile that lingered even after he got home, and not even Nanjiroh's best efforts were able to wipe it from his face._

---

He didn't know when or how he got there, but when Ryoma woke up, he found himself in a soft bed. Opening his eyes revealed an unfamiliar white ceiling, which definitely didn't belong to his room. He didn't even have time to wonder where he was before a face face appeared to pop out of nowehere, jolting him from his drowsiness.

"Echizen! You're awa- mmph!" Horio suddenly blurted out before Kachirou, who was standing beside him, covered his mouth. Standing across the bed form them was Katsuo, grinning apologetically.

"Horio-kun! Quiet down. The doctor might kick us out of here." Kachirou chided. Horio nodded twice before Kachirou let him go.

"Anyway, how are you feeling, Ryoma-kun?" Katsuo asked.

"What happened to you? You just left all of a sudden." Kachirou followed up, concern etched in every inch of his face.

"Yeah, yeah! That's right." Horio nodded, then lowered his voice a little bit when he got a glare from Kachirou. "Erm… weren't you supposed to come and watch practice today? Too bad you missed it. You could have seen how much I've improved after…"

Before Horio could say any more, he was interrupted by the arrival of one of their senpais. "You guys… If you don't keep it down you'll be kicked out of the infirmary like the rest of us were earlier." The three of them turned towards their senpai and bowed politely, a gesture which the senior returned before turning to the one lying on the bed.

"Oishi-senpai" Ryoma sat up and nodded in greeting. "What do you mean by 'the rest of us'? Who else was here?"

"Ah, yeah. Everyone was. Or everyone was before the nurse kicked us out because there were too many crowding the room" Seeing Ryoma's clueless face, Oishi clarified. "The regulars."

"The nurse only let us stay because we begged her and lied about being your classmates" Katsuo stuck his tongue out, grinning sheepishly.

"Although Horio-kun had to swear to Oishi-senpai fifty times that he wouldn't be noisy." Kachirou sighed.

"How come everyone knows?" Ryoma scowled. Passing out in the hallway in and of itself was embarrassing enough. He didn't like the idea of his seniors- former club seniors, he corrected himself- knowing about it.

"Ah! That's because…"

But before Horio could explain, he was cut off once again by another person's arrival. This time it was by the school nurse who had come to kick them out again for being too noisy, as there were other patients still asleep. Ryoma immediately took the chance to ask if he could go, to which the nurse agreed but not until after one more check up.

After he got out of the infirmary, Ryoma was surprised to see Oishi waiting for him. Then again, he mused, maybe he shouldn't have been surprised as Oishi had always been the worrywart, enough for him to earn the title of 'Seigaku's Mother'. If it hadn't been for his constant worrying, perhaps Oishi would've been Seigaku's one and only 'normal' member.

That train of thought ultimately led Ryoma to conclude that he was once part of a no-normal-person-allowed tennis club. Thinking that he realized it only now made him shudder. Looking back, he couldn't even remember how he had somehow managed to fit in and survive in a team made up of a captain who had the same reaction (or lack of it) to everything, a motherly vice captain, an ever-smiling senior who never failed to creep anyone out, a bouncy senior who never ran out of energy, a four-eyed data collecting stalker, a gentle senior with split personality, a bottomless pit of best friend, and a short-tempered, very scary viper.

'…_And of course there was me, The Boy Who Never Grew Up'_ Ryoma thought dejectedly. _'Even with all that milk' _He added spitefully.

"Right. We're here."

Ryoma snapped out of his thoughts upon hearing Oishi's voice. He hadn't noticed that they were already right in front of the train station. His senior walked towards the ticket booth but stopped midway.

"You're getting off at the fourth stop right?"

"Yes, but…" Before Ryoma could ask the question, his mind clicked. After all, Oishi wasn't that hard to figure out.

Ryoma ran and grabbed Oishi's tennis bag just in time. The senior was just a couple of steps away form the ticket booth. "Oishi-senpai, you don't have to accompany me. I'm all right now. I can go home on my own."

"Eh?" Oishi looked at him doubtfully. "Are you sure?"

"Mm." Ryoma nodded.

"But…"

"Oishi-senpai" Ryoma scowled at him, leaving no room for argument.

Oishi sighed in defeat. "If you say so. Be careful on the way home then, okay?"

"_Aa._ See you." Ryoma nodded before falling in line at a separate ticket booth.

After buying their respective tickets, they walked towards the platform entrance. Before they arrived at the platform, a memory struck Ryoma. He briefly debated whether he should ask, because just the thought of it was embarrassing already. But he decided to ask anyway as it would be ungrateful of him if he didn't.

"Ne, Oishi-senpai." Ryoma tentatively began.

"Hm?" Oishi looked at him.

"Earlier, I couldn't see clearly who but… One of the regulars found me, right?"

"Ah, that's right. Fuji did." Oishi smiled.

"Really…" Ryoma confirmed absently.

"When Kachirou came to the clubroom with Inui's sports bottle, he told us that you were supposed to return it personally, but for some reason, you suddenly backed out. After hearing that, Fuji pretty much bolted out of the club room."

Ryoma stooped in his tracks. Blinking curiously at Oishi, he asked "He did?"

Oishi looked back at him, smiling "Yeah. I didn't understand it either at first, but when he got back, he explained to us what happened. He suspected that something must have triggered you to react like that, and if he was right, then it was possible that something must have happened to you. And just as he predicted, he found you right when you passed out at the hallway and..."

"And?"

Oishi laughed nervously. "Ah, well, it's nothing. It's not important."

Ryoma wondered why his senpai was suddenly acting weird, but decided to dismiss it anyway.

"But that didn't save him from running 30 laps for skipping practice." Oishi sighed.

"I… I see." Ryoma's eyes widened slightly, unable to hide his utter amazement. '_As expected of Buchou…'_

Resuming his pace, Ryoma couldn't help but feel a little sorry for the prodigy. Just a little. '_I should thank him properly tomorrow.'_

When they reached the electronic gates, they both got in and went to their separate platforms. Ryoma only hoped that what happened today didn't reach his former coach, Ryuuzaki-sensei, because if it did then surely his father would know about it as well. Sighing, Ryoma steeled himself for the torment that awaited him at home in the form of Echizen Nanjiroh.

---

When the bell signaling lunch rang, Ryoma got up and headed for the door. He hadn't been able to talk to Fuji that morning as he barely made it in time for class, so he'd decided to go to talk to the progidy at lunch instead. He had to get it over with now anyway, or else he'd be forced to go during afternoon practice again- an idea he shot down instantly after remembering yesterday's events.

As soon as he exited his classroom, Oishi's smiling face greeted him. "Yo! Echizen."

"Oishi-senpai?"

Ryoma looked up at his senior suspiciously. He had a feeling he knew exactly why the older boy was there. But he decided to ask anyway. "Did you need something?"

"Ah, um… Right! Is Fuyuno here?"

"Fuyuno?"

Ryoma racked his brain. He wasn't exactly the best at remembering people's names, much less people themselves. That was one of the weaknesses he had never even bothered to try to overcome.

"Oishi-senpai?" Ryoma started when he heard a voice from behind. "Sorry, I didn't mean to eavesdrop, but I heard my name. Were you looking for me?"

He recognized that voice. It was one of the guys who he overheard talking about him the other day from outside the classroom. This guy was the one who had lost to him the top spot for the entrance exam rankings.

"Ah, yes. I was wondering if you were done with the budget proposal." Oishi grinned.

"Yes, I'm done. Wait, I'll go get it." The boy went over to his desk and took a thin accounting ledger and a folder from his school bag. He handed them to Oishi, the senior accepting them gratefully. "Though… It would've been fine even if you didn't come here, senpai. I was just on my way to the student council office to submit it."

Ryoma scowled at his senior, making it clear that the latter had been busted. He knew it. Oishi had come to check on him after all.

"I… I see." Oishi grinned lopsidedly, purposely avoiding Ryoma's gaze.

The other boy, Fuyuno, just looked at the two of them alternately, puzzled. Deciding that it was none of his business, he shrugged then and walked away. "Then, see you at this afternoon's budget meeting, Oishi-senpai."

"So, Echizen, you came out of your classroom just now. Where were you headed?" Oishi swiftly diverted to another topic. He relaxed a little when Ryoma's scowl faded.

"That's right. I have to go see Fuji-senpai. It's about yesterday, I…"

"Echizen! Are you okay now?" Horio's voice echoed from the hallway.

'_Just popped out of nowhere again…He's like a mushroom.' _Ryoma inwardly sighed. _'A shrieking mushroom, at that.'_ He was starting to think that in three years' time, if he didn't try staying away from Horio, he wouldn't be able to finish high school with his ear drums intact.

"Ryoma-kun. That's great. It looks like you're better now." Kachirou, smiling, appeared from behind Horio.

"Are you going to come and watch practice this afternoon?" Katsuo, who was in turn tailing behind Kachirou, asked with a gleam of excitement in his eyes.

'_Freshmen Trio huh… they're more like The Mushroom Trio.' _Ryoma playfully thought as he absently listened to their excited babbles.

"That's a great idea! If you come and watch us play, you can give us some advice on what to improve!"

"Right! Right! Though I don't really need it because I already have five years of tennis experience…"

Ryoma wanted to bang his head on the wall. This was the reason he'd decided to throw away his common sense and go see Fuji, despite how scary the mere though of it was. Yet, all of a sudden the freshmen trio were practically dragging him to the afternoon practices. He needed to come up with an excuse, and fast.

"You guys, I'm afraid he can't do that."

"Eh?" The ichinen trio looked questioningly at Oishi. Much to Ryoma's chagrin, so did he.

"What, Echizen, you forgot already? Didn't you promise me yesterday that you'd help out with the student council duties during your free time?"

"He did!?" Horio, Katsuo and Kachirou asked in chorus.

For the first time, Ryoma was thankful that Horio's voice was ten times louder than that of an average person's. It effectively drowned out his own voice when he reflexively asked "I did?"

"Yup. In fact, we were just on our way before you guys came. Sorry, but, it looks like he won't have time to watch us during practice anymore." Oishi wrapped an arm around Ryoma's shoulder and steered him down the hallway. "See you at practice!"

When they were safely away from the freshmen trio's earshot, Oishi released a sigh. He ruffled Ryoma's hair and grinned apologetically. "Sorry about that, Echizen. Don't take it seriously, though. I only said it to cover for you."

Ryoma's features relaxed. To Oishi, it almost looked like a smile. "Thanks, Oishi-senpai."

"Echizen… Listen, I apologize for those three. What they did back there may be a little insensitive but, Echizen, you have to understand that because they're still at a very early stage in their tennis they don't understand what you're going through. Then again… maybe none of us really do."

Oishi's smile faded a little. Ryoma thought he saw a sad look flash in the older boy's kind eyes, before the latter's face broke into a smile again, albeit a little strained. Suddenly, he felt Oishi's grip on his shoulder tighten.

With unwavering gaze, Oishi looked straight into Ryoma's eyes and spoke in his gentlest voice. "I don't know what happened, but if there's anything I can do to help you recover, even just a little bit, don't hesitate to ask, all right?"

Not knowing what to say, Ryoma could only nod, a small smile gracing his face.

"Then, just let me drop this at the student council office and I'll go with you to Fuji's classroom." Upon seeing Ryoma's suspicious look, Oishi quickly added. "I, uh, have to get the school exit survey forms from their class representative. We also need it for this afternoon's budge… err, I mean, general meeting."

Ryoma didn't bother to argue, thinking it would be useless anyway. When they reached the student council office, he waited for Oishi to come back out before heading for the fourth floor where the third years' classrooms were located. As soon as they reached Fuji's classroom, Eiji, who was in the same class, enthusiastically bounced towards them.

"Ochibi-chan!" Ryoma barely had time to react before Eiji jumped on him, giving him the traditional crushing bear hug. "Are you okay now?"

"I was." Ryoma coughed. "Until you came at me."

"Wah! Sorry, Ochibi-chan." Eiji reluctantly released him then settled for ruffling his hair instead, apologizing far too cheerfully.

Watching their usual antics just made Oishi chuckle.

"Kikumaru-senpai, is Fuji-senpai here?" Ryoma asked, running his fingers through his now messy hair in a futile attempt to repair the damage from Eiji's assault.

"Ah, he went to the cafeteria. I think it's about time for him to be back, though." Just then, Eiji's face broke into playful smile. Wiggling his eyebrows, he asked "Why? Did you need something from your prince?"

Ryoma stared blankly at him, droopy eyed. "Ha?"

"Wait! Eiji that's…"

Oishi tried to interject, but before he could do so, Eiji giggled and animatedly recounted yesterday's events. The part when Kachirou came to the clubroom with Inui's bottle, to when Fuji left all of a sudden, and up until when Fuji supposedly found Ryoma at the hallway as the younger boy fainted were things the tennis prince already heard from Oishi. What he hadn't heard was what happened right after that.

Apparently, Eiji had teasingly asked how Fuji managed to take Ryoma to the infirmary when the tensai himself looked too weak to carry a pail of water. Eiji paused, clearing his throat theatrically. Then, with a gleeful smile (which Ryoma could easily guess was an exaggerated imitation of Fuji's), Eiji recalled the prodigy's answer in verbatim.

_//"I didn't have any problems at all. He was light and delicate, just like a princess."//_

From the corner of his eye, Ryoma saw Oishi smack his forehead. He suddenly remembered part of the conversation he had with the older boy the day before. His senpai's odd behavior had now made sense.

_//And just as he predicted, he found you right when you passed out at the hallway and..."_

"_And?" _

_Oishi laughed nervously. "Ah, well, it's nothing. It's not important."//_

Feeling an eyebrow twitch, Ryoma asked in a dangerously low voice. "He said that in front of everyone?"

"Yup! Everyone." Eiji giggled, utterly oblivious to Ryoma's quietly rising temper. "Ah! Speak of the devil. He's here, Ochibi. Your prince."

Following Eiji's gaze, Ryoma looked in Fuji's direction. The aforementioned senior was coming their way, with the ever-blissful smile plastered on his face. A smile Ryoma found more annoying than ever.

Reluctantly, and with an angry scowl, Ryoma approached the older boy.

"Thank you for yesterday, Fuji-senpai."

He gave a curt bow and walked down the hallway. However, he had barely taken two steps when the other replied. It was a reply that made him wish Tezuka had made the tensai run ten times the laps he had yesterday.

"No problem, Hime-chan." (1)

* * *

**To be continued…**

(1) Hime-chan or hime means 'princess' :p

**A/N: **I guess it's pointless to make excuses now, as most of you already know how slow I write (bows apologetically). I can only hope that you will continue to watch over the progress of this little fic of mine. I can't promise, but I'll try to write faster as I have more free time now that I'm finally done with uni. Wee :p

As always, please thank arccie-sensei for editing this chapter. This had a bunch of mistakes that would've made your head hurt reading if she hadn't done the necessary corrections (shrinks) See you on the next chapter!!


	5. Chapter 05: Forkroad

-x-

_Do you ever stop and wonder where this road will take you  
What's around the corner, will it make or break you  
Is this your destination  
Or is it the start of something new (1)_

-x-

Ryoma heaved a deep sigh. Usually, if he'd had breakfast already, he wouldn't bother with lunch anymore. But today, because he woke up late, he had to skip breakfast to get to school on time. And today, of all days, the cafeteria had to be doubly packed.

_'Sheesh. I wonder if the entire school just happened to wake up late and skipped breakfast too.'_ Ryoma thought idly, sizing up the line.

Just then, he noticed a familiar figure. Next in line to the cashier was unmistakably the school's dubbed tennis genius- Fuji Syuusuke.

As if feeling someone's eyes on him, Fuji turned around and flashed a smile when he spotted Ryoma, only to turn his attention back to the cashier when it was his turn to pay. He then headed to where the younger boy was as soon as he was done, two melon rolls and an apple juice on his hands.

"Heh… I didn't know even a genius wakes up late and skips breakfast."

Fuji chuckled.

"Saa. My thoughts exactly." He countered, reminding the shorter one he was no less of a genius himself.

Resenting his inability to come up with something to retaliate- and shoving the blame on his empty stomach for affecting his brain- he resorted to the first reaction his hampered brain could process. He pouted.

"Che."

Fuji tapped his head with one of the rolls.

"A peace offering." He smiled sweetly.

And just when Ryoma's hand was about to reach out for the presented bun, Fuji promptly added "To the angered princess."

Right then and there Ryoma had decided to reject it. But the words 'No thanks' had barely escaped his lips when his stomach growled. Cursing his stomach, Ryoma learned the hard way never to skip breakfast again.

"I've never met a more insolent prince." Ryoma retorted, but grabbed the offending roll anyway before trotting off.

--

With a bright gleam in his eyes, Eiji gazed at a form he had just filled out. It was almost complete, save for the only remaining blank- the one at the top of the page labeled "First choice".

Giggling, he carefully wrote down the name of a school, making sure it was his best penmanship and the cleanest possible. After finishing the last character down to the very last stroke, he nodded with satisfaction then carefully folded the application form and tucked it in his bag.

"Hmmm… So that's the college Eiji is aiming for."

"Gya!" Eiji jumped and almost fell off his seat, startled by the voice that came from behind. "Fu… Fuji! Don't scare me like that! My poor heart…" He clutched his chest theatrically.

He was so engrossed in what he was doing, he hadn't noticed his best friend's presence at all. Then he remembered why he was so preoccupied in the first place. He bounced up and down his seat, making the chair wobble.

"Na, na, Fuji! I'm handing in my college selection form today, and I'm really excited! Can you guess why? Can you guess why?"

He tugged on Fuji's dark sleeve like a child.

"Hm…" Fuji closed his eyes with a cheerful face, his free hand pressing his index finger on his cheek while the other still held his lunch. "I wonder…"

Too excited to wait, he eagerly asked. "Give up?"

Fuji laughed, playing along. "Yes, I give up."

"Because Oishi and I are going to the same college!" Eiji yelled, raising his arms in the air.

"Eh?" Fuji looked puzzled.

His excitement faded a little seeing Fuji's reaction. Eiji peered curiously at the other boy's face. "Fuji?"

"Ah, no… It's nothing. It's just, I thought Oishi was aiming for a national university. Like Tezuka." Fuji muttered pensively.

Eiji frowned. "No way. Oishi said so himself! He promised we'd stay together even after high school. He did!" He answered defensively.

Fuji sighed, seeing the cheerful atmosphere around Eiji rapidly dissipating. Unable to bear seeing his best friend's downcast face, looking like he's about to cry, Fuji squatted beside the other boy's desk then patted his head.

"Eiji, aren't you always the first one to believe in what Oishi says? No matter what?"

Eiji briefly bit his lower lip, then finally faced the other boy. Seeing his smiling face, he couldn't help but grin back.

"Mm!"

Satisfied with the reply. Fuji retreated to his own desk, which was right behind Eiji's, and turned his attention to his neglected lunch. Eiji wasn't sure if he had imagined it, but it seemed as though Fuji smiled at the melon roll before tearing open the wrapper. As the other boy blissfully munched away, Eiji wondered if it was actually that tasty. He suddenly felt hungry again even though he had already finished his own lunch.

Sensing Eiji's stare, Fuji stopped right before taking another bite. Grinning, he cut the roll in two and gave away half of it. "Here. You can have that. I can't finish it anyway."

Remembering how Fuji could barely finish even the finger sandwiches his mother sometimes prepares for him, and always ends up sharing it with Eiji, erased the latter's guilty feelings from taking the offered portion.

"You're the best, Fuji!"

As he chewed the roll, the filling oozed into his tongue. The cold cream perfectly complemented the fragrant, freshly baked bun and the sweetness was just right. Now he knew why it was the most popular snack in the campus.

"No wonder this is Ochibi's favorite." He uttered as he tossed the rest into his mouth and licked the tips of his thumb and index finger.

"Oh, is it?" Fuji glanced at him in the middle of unwrapping the straw for his apple juice.

"Yup! He doesn't eat school food that often, but whenever he does, it's always just that. Come to think of it, I think I saw him with another one when he passed by our classroom on his way to the rooftop."

Fuji wordlessly popped the straw into his juice as the Eiji ranted on and on.

"Well, at least I'm glad to know the little one ate something. Do you remember? I told you this morning that I saw him from this window running across the school grounds. He probably rushed to school and didn't have anything for breakfast. And that's no good! Our Ochibi needs too eat to grow taller! Well, not that I'll complain if he doesn't because right now he's just about as big as my teddy bear! The perfect size for cuddling!"

He sniggered, wrapping his arms around an imaginary object.

"Still… Fuji, you took such a long time to come back. There was probably a long line, right? But to think Ochibi would actually be patient enough to line up for that… Nah, don't think so. Someone else probably got it for him. Like Momo or one of the ichinen trio or something."

With a knowing smile, Fuji looked out the window as he continued to sip his apple juice.

"Achoo!"

Up on the rooftop, Ryoma's sneeze shattered the silence. He rubbed his nose, sniffling. It was supposed to late Spring already yet it was still unbearably cold. Thinking on it but not really caring whether he figured it out or not, he continued to chomp on his melon roll and finished it just right before the bell for the next period rang.

--

As it was raining pretty heavily, Ryoma wasn't surprised to hear that tennis practice was cancelled, so it wasn't unexpected to see Oishi in the library. It's just, other than Tezuka, he rarely ever saw the other members venture into this part of the school. Seeing the vice captain there was a first for him.

Not that the older boy gave the impression of indifference towards books. Rather, he was just too busy juggling tennis club and student council activities to drop by. He seemed to be immersed in a sheet of paper clasped in both hands and looked somewhat torn for a moment, before his face straightened as if he had made up his mind.

Not wanting to bother him since he looked deep in thought, Ryoma moved along. With a light pile of books in his arms, he headed for the home economics section to put the recipe books back into their respective shelves.

A mop of sunny gold hair caught his attention. The light colored locks stood out as it clashed with their dark uniform. The boy was reaching for a book on one of the upper shelves.

_'If Kevin was a student here, he'd probably look like that.'_

Finally discerning Ryoma's presence, the boy turned to him, blinking owlishly. Ryoma blinked back before his mind clicked and he remembered the broken stepladder. He nonchalantly wondered how a school rich enough to afford huge tennis grounds and the latest sports equipment could possibly lack budget for a meager stepladder. Of course, he would have considered offering to help had it not been a ridiculous idea, seeing he was about the same height as the other, if not shorter.

" 'Quick and Easy Japanese Homestyle Cooking'… Is that what you wanted?"

Ryoma heard Eiji's lively voice as the older guy walked past him and approached the third boy. With his height, he effortlessly reached for the aforementioned book on the top shelf and handed it to the blonde kid.

"Th… Thank you." The boy timidly stammered in a weird accent.

"No problemo!" Eiji beamed proudly, before turning to Ryoma.

"But really, Echizen, how mean. Why didn't you help him?"

"Kikumaru-senpai, I'm surprised that you actually do know my name." Ryoma sighed then walked towards their subject of conversation and stood right beside him. He gave a scolding look to the very person who baptized him with the name 'Ochibi'.

"Now tell me, senpai. Between the two of us, who's lacking more on the height department?"

"Oops." Eiji stuck his tongue out, smiling sheepishly.

In the corner of his eye, Ryoma noticed how their little banter seemed to ease tenseness, which was visible in the other boy's face earlier. Eiji seemed to have noticed too, as he flashed a smile and extended his arm to him.

"Kikumaru Eiji. Nice to meet you."

The other boy shook his outstretched hand and grinned back. "Um… Ono Haruhi. Pleased to meet you."

"And this little one here is Ochi…"

"Echizen Ryoma." Ryoma cut in before Eiji could spread his evil nickname any further. Unable to shake hands as he still had the books in his arms, Ryoma settled for a nod, and Haruhi politely returned the gesture before walking off.

"Oh yeah, Ochibi, have you seen Oishi? I remember him mentioning the library at the club room after Ryuzaki-sensei dismissed us." Eiji asked offhandedly, looking around.

"Ah, he was by the biology section. Corner desk right beside the window." Ryoma nodded to the right, to the direction where he last saw Oishi.

"Ah! There he is. Great! Thanks!"

Eiji steadily walked towards the other senior. As the hyperactive ball of bottomless energy got closer to his target, his pace lessened until he was just tiptoeing. Ignoring Eiji's antics, Ryoma turned his attention to the unsuspecting Oishi.

He observed that the tennis club's vice captain was still looking at the same piece of paper he had been earlier. He wondered if the contents really bothered his motherly senior that much. But seeing Eiji get closer and closer to Oishi, Ryoma couldn't help but feel slightly relieved.

After all, the one person who knew how to make all of Oishi's troubles go away was his other half in their legendary duo.

At least, that was what Ryoma thought before Eiji froze in place as soon as he got to Oishi's side. Far from his playful demeanor just seconds ago, Eiji's eyes were wide with shock, before his face contorted in anger.

"Oishi…"

Unable to spot the other boy's approaching figure at all, Oishi was equally surprised to see Eiji there. But he noticed him a little too late. After bellowing "Oishi, you idiot!" he swiftly dashed for the exit.

"You there! No running in the library!" The librarian roared after Eiji.

Ryoma thought it was probably useless, because in his furious state, he doubted Eiji would care. Turning his eyes to the other person involved, Oishi looked so helpless as his shoulders slumped and he plopped down on the chair. Deciding to shove the recipe books on a random space in the shelves, the younger boy walked towards his senior.

"Oishi-senpai, what was that about?"

"E… Echizen. So you saw that just now, huh." Oishi sighed, traces of exhaustion visible on his gentle face. He then handed a form to Ryoma- the very same one he had seen Oishi looking at since the start of his library rep shift.

"It's all because of this."

"Tokyo University application form?"

"When the school choice forms were handed out, Eiji asked me which college I wanted to go to. If I had told him that I wanted to go to TokyoDai, Eiji would have aimed for the same place without hesitation. But that's precisely the problem. I know which school he really wants to go to, but between the school and being with me…"

"Kikumaru-senpai would have, without fail, chosen to be with Oishi-senpai…" Ryoma unconsciously voiced out his thoughts.

"Damn it. I've really done it this time…" Oishi exhaled, resting his head in both hands.

It was the first time Ryoma ever heard the well-mannered boy curse, but he stayed by his side and listened without batting an eye.

--

"Just as I thought…" Fuji mumbled, looking grave, as he hung the silver cordless handset on its base on the wall. He had just finished his conversation with Eiji, which was mostly one-sided, where the other party had whined to him about the events that took place at the library earlier.

It had been almost an hour ago when the phone rang while he was in the middle of watering his potted cacti on the windowsill. He picked up the beige mini sprinkler with an intricate white rose design near the base and resumed his task. He looked out the window and briefly admired the sunset when he noticed a rainbow.

"How pretty…" He instinctively reached for his Leica before turning the rod that closes the blinds.

He walked out of his dimmed room and sauntered down the stairs. As he reached the bottom, the door opened and his sister walked in.

"I'm home." She announced to no one in particular as she closed the door behind her.

"Ah, Syuusuke. There you are. Is everyone home?" She asked as she took off her white lacquer-finish pumps and put them in the shoe cupboard.

"Yup. Mom's in the kitchen and Dad's in his study. Yuuta's not coming home tonight." The younger Fuji replied as he took his sister's brown coat hanging from one arm and hung it in the coat rack before taking his own chocolate brown jacket.

"I see. Where are you going?"

"I'm just going out to take a picture of the rainbow before it fades then I'm going to Eiji's." He answered offhandedly as he donned his jacket. "He's kind of upset about something so I'll hang out at his place for a bit. Neesan, I have my house key so please don't wait up for me."

"Gotcha. Oh, Syuusuke, bring a towel with you."

"Hai?" Syuusuke tilted his head to the side. "Neesan, Eiji's pretty depressed but I really don't think he'll cry _that_ much."

"Not that, silly. It's cold outside so bring a towel, ne?" Yumiko flashed her notorious ultra-sweet smile before trotting off to the kitchen. "Mommy dear! What's for dinner?"

Fuji could only gape.

Not an umbrella. Not a jacket. Of all things, his sister had to tell him to bring a towel. He mused that it was a good thing he had his camera bag with him. It would have been odd to walk around carrying a towel.

--

Even as Ryoma got home, what took place at the library still followed him. Unable to take it off his mind, he rummaged through his cupboard, ignoring Karupin who had been pawing and meowing at his feet, occasionally rubbing its furry head against his legs. Random things went flying across his room until he finally found what it was that he was searching for.

"Got it."

He grinned with satisfaction as he looked at a protection charm in his hand. On the day of his flight back to America three years ago, Oishi had given him what was called an _omamori_. He had kept it with him ever since, especially whenever he went on a trip, as that was what the charm was supposedly for. At least, according to what his cousin said anyway.

Ryoma reached for his school bag and opened it. However, before he could even put the charm in, Karupin snatched it and ran away.

"Karupin!"

Ryoma sorely regretted his habit of leaving his bedroom door open. He chased the feline all the way down the stairs, into the kitchen, round and round the living room, until the front door opened and his father walked in.

"I'm home." He boisterously yelled.

Karupin seized that opportunity and ran out the door.

"Ah! Stupid old man!"

Ryoma frantically tore past Nanjiro and went out to the sunset painted streets.

"What did I do _this_ time?" Nanjiroh whined, lazily scratching his stomach barely covered by his tattered yukata

--

_'__Impudent feline. See what I'll do to your catnip when we get home.'_

All sorts of sinister plot towards the favorite toy's untimely demise ran through Ryoma's head as he continued to chase his cat. He knew it was his bad for not playing with the spoiled pet when it demanded his attention, but still… His train of thought halted when Karupin jumped into one of the bushes and headed straight for the riverbank.

Ryoma squatted behind shrubbery, waiting for Karupin to let its guard down before sneaking an attack. Just as he had figured, Karupin eventually settled on the sloping lawn then blissfully played with the stolen item.

As swiftly as he could, Ryoma jumped out of the shrubs and grabbed a hold of the protection charm. After successfully retrieving it and safely tucking it in his pocket, Ryoma thought to himself 'Mission accomplished!"

So he assumed, one second before the slippery grass underneath his feet betrayed him.

As a result of the earlier downpour, the grass was still wet causing him to slip and fall into the shallow river, inelegantly landing on his butt. With a colorful line of curses running through his mind, Ryoma grudgingly pushed himself up.

The water he fell on was knee high so it was almost like plunging into a tub, the only difference being arctic waters instead of a nice warm bath. A cold wind blew, making him sneeze. While rubbing his nose, he suddenly heard something flutter above him before he felt its weight on his shoulders. A fluffy fiber tickled his nape.

Looking up, he was surprised to see an all too familiar smiling face.

"What are you doing here?" He asked, sniffing unflappably, before shifting his gaze to the little fur ball behind Fuji.

He glared at the little one, making it jump into the older boy's arms. Fuji caught Karupin smoothly, as if he had done it so often until it became a habit.

"Good evening to you too, Echizen." Fuji smiled pleasantly, scratching the back of Karupin's ears. "I was just on my way back from Eiji's place when I saw you squatting behind the bushes. I was curious, so I decided to watch you from a distance. All of a sudden you just jumped in then I heard a splash."

_'Geh. I wonder if anyone else saw…'_ Ryoma inwardly cringed.

"Still, wandering around my part of the neighborhood conveniently carrying a towel when I coincidentally needed one… Fuji-senpai, I'm starting to think you're hanging around Inui-senpai a little too often."

"Saa… It's cold outside." Fuji blithely echoed his sister's words, who made him lug the towel in the first place.

"I didn't know it's your habit to bring a towel with you whenever it's cold out side, Fuji-senpai." Ryoma smirked.

"I didn't know you had the habit of swimming in random rivers when it's cold outside, Echizen." The older boy threw right back at him.

Once again failing to come up with a retort, Ryoma huffed. He reluctantly rubbed his arms and legs with the towel before wrapping it around his shoulders in an attempt to warm himself albeit thoroughly soaked clothes.

"Thanks, Fuji-senpai. I'll give this back to you after it's been washed." He spoke in an honest, childlike tone and briefly flashed a smile to the older boy before walking up the slanted riverbank, this time careful enough not to slip.

Karupin hopped off Fuji's arms and leapt into his, meowing apologetically. Seeing his cat looking regretful for what he did, all evil thoughts harbored towards the catnip evaporated as Ryoma held his pet.

--

After being reprimanded by the librarian for half an hour for not putting the recipe books back to where they should have been, Ryoma's ears kept ringing as he started on his library rep duties. He was thinking of asking if he could get off early but the idea flew out the window as soon as he met with the librarian's deathly glare upon stepping in.

He wanted to talk to Oishi about something, but since he failed to find him during lunch, he had to put it off until after classes. He was going to try to catch him after club activities but with the amount of books he had to put back, it looked like he wouldn't be able to do that either. He never expected to see Oishi in the same desk, at the same window spot, with the exact same spaced out expression as he had the day before.

Only this time, he wasn't looking at a piece of paper but out the window. And with the weather being devoid of rain clouds, Ryoma knew that practice was far from cancelled.

_'That's rare… Someone like him skipping practice…'_

Then, remembering why he had wanted to talk to Oishi, Ryoma decided to grab his chance and approached the vice captain.

"Oishi-senpai. Can I ask you something?"

Oishi jerked, as if he had just been roused from a light nap.

"E… Echizen. Sorry, do you need something?"

Ryoma reached into his pocket and pulled out a slightly crumpled but completely dry protection charm.

"This… I was cleaning up yesterday when I found it among my stuff." Ryoma unconsciously averted his eyes from Oishi at the blatant lie. When he met the other boy's eyes again, he was grateful to see that the older boy was obviously too troubled to notice, then he continued without averting his eyes again. "You were the one who gave this to me three years ago. I just remembered that I never really knew what it was for. What do these characters mean, Oishi-senpai?"

Watching the younger boy's youthful curiosity, Oishi couldn't help but smile. He gently took the protection charm and read the characters out to Ryoma.

"To find one's way home…"

Turning from the protection charm to Ryoma, Oishi gazed into the younger boy's bright, golden eyes as he said. "That was what I prayed in the temple for you. No matter where and how far you are, you will never go astray. You will always, always, find your way home."

Ryoma, in turn, looked from Oishi to the protection charm.

"A home…" He muttered pensively. "Somewhere I want to return to… someone I want to return to…"

Oishi ruffled Ryoma's hair. "That's right! You got…it…"

The bright smile suddenly vanished from Oishi's face, only to re-emerge with double the megawatts. He grabbed Ryoma's shoulders and shook them a little too forcefully.

"That's it! Echizen! Why didn't I think of that before!? Sorry, I'll see you later. There's something I have to do."

Oishi dashed out of the library, much like Eiji did only the day before. Ryoma once again heard the librarian's frightening howl.

"You there! No running in the library!"

As his gaze followed Oishi's retreating form, Ryoma grinned to himself.

_'Looks like it worked.'_

--

On his way to the train station, he saw Eiji and Oishi inside an apartment agency as he turned the corner. He wasn't the least bit stunned to see the two all over each other again. He was glad the 'protection charm' tactic worked after all.

With a playful smile on his face, Ryoma thought of how many laps Tezuka made the vice captain run for skipping club practice that day.

He made his way up the stairs and boarded right before the signal rang and the double doors closed. As the train moved forward and gathered speed, the colors outside started to blur. The only color that seemed unaffected was the cloudless blue towering over the changing scenery.

Looking up at the infinitely high sky triggered memories to resurface.

_--_

_It was a humid Sunday afternoon, and exams had just finished. As their coach's treat to them for getting good results, Ryoma and Kevin were given full three days off. So while everyone else were getting brutally scolded and given more intense training, Ryoma was on the open fields surrounding the public tennis courts, taking his time relishing a thick paperback he had been looking forward to since he bought it months ago. He just never got around to starting on it as real life kept getting in the way._

_After a somewhat drawn out introduction, he was just finally getting to the interesting part- the one where the plot was actually starting to move- when he suddenly felt something land on his lap._

_"Man… You sure lose sight of everything else as soon as you open a book. You obviously didn't detect my presence at all, even until I got here."_

_Kevin shifted a little to make himself more comfortable, using Ryoma's lap as pillow while the rest of his body was sprawled out on the grass. Deciding to ignore his friend, he flipped the page and kept on reading. He failed to finish the sentence when he saw Kevin's little and ring fingers block the last few letters as the other boy grabbed the book's spine._

_"On a beautiful day like this, don't you think it's a waste not to pay more attention to your surroundings? Come on, you can read this later when you get home. Look around you a bit more, will you?"_

_"I'm reading. Your hand's in the way."_

_Ryoma tried to pry Kevin's fingers off but the latter simply strengthened his hold on the book and completely took it away from Ryoma._

_"Give that back!"_

_Ryoma tried to reach for it._

_"No, man. Not until you do as I say."_

_Kevin only kept pulling it away._

_Ryoma sighed, giving in. The sooner he did what Kevin wanted, the sooner he got the book back. "Fine. What do you want?"_

_"Like I said, look around you. Isn't it nice out today? Just look at how gorgeous the sky is."_

_Ryoma looked up. Maybe it was because he was reading continuously for more than three hours, but his eyes felt refreshed as he looked up at the calm azure. The longer he looked, the more he realized that it wasn't just his eyes, but his entire body seemed to feel a whole lot lighter._

_"It's so high up isn't it? It feels so far away… so unreachable. That's where you are, Ryoma. Isn't it great? Isn't that where you've always wanted to be?"_

_--_

Ryoma snapped out of his thoughts when the train stopped and the station's name was announced. As he got off the train, Kevin's voice resonated in his mind, repeating the question he was asked back then.

_/"Isn't that where you've always wanted to be?"/_

Ryoma frowned.

_'Where am I?'_

_'Where do I want to go?'_

_'Kevin… I still haven't found the answer.'_

* * *

**To be continued…**

(1) Quoted from the song "Story of Your Life" by Ali Slaight

A/N: Once again, sorry for the delay (cries). Real life keeps getting in the way. XD


	6. Chapter 06: Trust

_The friend is the man who knows all about you, and still likes you._  
- Elbert Hubbard

-x-

"A… Achoo!"

Ryoma rubbed his nose with his wrist, sniffling. He wondered if he caught a cold after his little dip in the shallow river yesterday as he lazily dragged his feet towards one of the third year classrooms. He was carrying a paper bag with a newly washed towel inside.

He approached one of the third years chatting by the door and asked for Fuji. He smiled and told Ryoma to wait a second while he called his classmate. He came back with Fuji and Eiji in tow.

"Thanks" Ryoma gave him a curt bow.

"No problem" The senior went back to chatting with his friends.

"Thank you for yesterday, Fuji-senpai" Ryoma gave him a small smile as he handed the paper bag.

"Anytime" Fuji grinned back, accepting it.

Kikumaru curiously tried to peek at what was inside, which Fuji's sharp eyes did not miss so he opened it to show his best friend what was inside.

"A towel?" Kikumaru raised his eyebrows.

"Yeah. I happened to see Echizen soaked after swimming on the river close to your street yesterday, so I leant it to him." Fuji chuckled.

"Huh…" Kikumaru looked like he still did not make any sense of it, but simply shrugged it off. He then noticed what Ryoma was carrying in his other hand- a juice box and melon bun. "Ohhh, are you headed for the rooftop to have lunch? I wanna go too!"

Without waiting for Ryoma's response, Eiji quickly dashed to his desk to grab his own bento box. Halfway towards the door, he did a 180 and went over to Fuji's desk to grab Fuji's lunch as well then handed it over to Fuji when he got back. "You're coming too, right?"

"Do I have a choice?" Fuji teased playfully.

Ryoma climbed up the familiar staircase followed by his seniors. It was a sunny day, but the heat of the sun was toned down by the cool Spring breeze making it a pleasant day to be up on the rooftop. They sat together and ate- Ryoma in silence while Kikumaru and Fuji chatted with Kikumaru talking 98% of the conversation and Fuji simply smiling.

"And so you know~ Oishi and I went to see this place and it was great! It's a new apartment building, and if we buy it we'll be the first tenants. There's a gym, a pool too! The apartment itself isn't really that big, but it's okay because there are only two of us. Plus it has a kitchen, dining…"

"A… Achoo!"

Eiji's suddenly halted his train of babbles when he heard Ryoma sneeze.

"Ochibi? Did you catch a cold?" Kikumaru peered at him, making Ryoma slightly uncomfortable.

His two seniors could easily tell by now that Ryoma's silence meant 'yes'.

"Is that why you didn't go to school with Momo this morning?" Fuji asked, though his tone sounded like he already knew the answer. He just wanted to hear it from the person himself.

"Urk" Ryoma flinched.

"Of course! Knowing Momo, he'd probably tell you not to go to school." Eiji piped in.

"I just didn't want him to be nosy." Ryoma pouted in defeat.

"That won't do, Ochibi-chan. Don't hide things like that from Momo just 'cause you don't want him to worry. Doing things like that, sometimes if backfires, you know?"

There were times the usually hyperactive Kikumaru's sharpness surprised him. Ryoma then remembered what happened between the Golden Pair just a couple of days ago. Because Oishi had kept his application to university a secret from Kikumaru, it made the latter feel like he wasn't trusted. And in every friendship, trust is always the main foundation.

'_I've… been unfair to him.'  
_

While Ryoma was lost in thought, the bell rang signalling the end of lunch.

-x-

When classes were dismissed, Ryoma saw Momo waiting for him where he always parked his bike. Momoshiro got on before Ryoma hopped on the back. As they rode out of the school gates, Ryoma lightly tapped the broad shoulder he was holding on to.

"Momo-senpai… Can we go to the tennis court by the temple where my dad rots all day reading porn?"

"Pfft, did you really have to say it like that?" Momoshiro snorted.

"There's something I want to show you."

When they got there, Momo looked around the place with a nostalgic smile.

"We used to play here all the time. Where's your dad?"

"He probably left already. He's usually home by sunset." Ryoma said nonchalantly as he picked up a couple of racquets leaning on a well. "Shall we go for a round?"

"Seriously?" Momo grinned widely, eyes glimmering with excitement. "But wait, if you're able to play already, why didn't you join the tennis club then? I heard you got in a car crash when you were in America, so I always thought, you know, your injuries and all…"

Without answering, Ryoma stood in serving position, grabbed the neon green felt ball Tezuka gave him from his pocket, and threw it up in the air. He swung his racquet, and at that moment Momoshiro admired his perfect form before he had to dodge a racquet that missed his face by mere centimeters. It took him a few seconds to realize Ryoma lost hold of his racquet, making it fly towards his senior. Looking at the other side of the old worn out net that was torn in a lot of places, Momoshiro saw the shorter boy simply standing there, staring at his hand which was trembling.

"Echizen…"

He hastily picked up the racquet, jumped over the net and ran over to his best friend's side.

"You okay?"

"This is the reason I didn't join, Momo-senpai." Ryoma's voice came out barely louder than a whisper. "Every time I hold a tennis racquet, I remember what happened that night, and I just start shaking all over. You see, the accident happened right after a tournament. Kevin and I both won our competitions. But on the drive back home, a car started following us. One thing led to another and it became a race… a stupid race that led to that accident. And Kevin…"

Ryoma clenched his fists.

"I could've done something to prevent it, but I didn't. It's no different from that being all my fault. Whenever I think about how he can no longer play tennis, my hand- my entire body- just goes numb."

Not knowing what to say, and not wanting to force himself to say anything just because he felt like he had to, Momoshiro kept quiet. He was still trying to process everything he heard from the shorter boy who was carrying a heavy burden on such a small back. Their awkward silence was broken by Ryoma's sneeze.

"Come on. It's getting late, I'll take you home." Momoshiro said, ruffling Echizen's hair.

Ryoma simply nodded, rubbing his nose with his index finger as he picked up the fallen tennis ball with his other hand and pocketed it. He got home just in time for dinner, but he told his mother he was not hungry and wanted to go to sleep. His mother simply nodded, but after Ryoma went upstairs to his room, she told her husband to prepare a basin with warm water and alcohol along with a small towel.

"Wahhh, so troublesome." Nanjiro whined, scratching his stomach.

"Then, would you rather take over cooking so I can do it instead, Honey?" Rinko smiled sweetly, reaching out the ladle to her husband.

"Fine" Nanjiro sighed in defeat, lazily getting up from the porch.

"You were right after all, Auntie? Did Ryoma-san come down with a cold?" Ryoma's cousin asked while cutting up peeled carrots on a wooden chopping board.

"Yes. He doesn't have any appetite whenever he's sick. Other than chocolate, he won't touch anything I give him. Not even plain chicken soup or porridge."

"But wow... It's amazing that you can tell right away your son has a cold. Mother's instinct?"

Rinko chuckled upon hearing that.

"Nanako-chan, would you believe if I tell you it's his dad who's always first to notice whenever Ryoma has a cold?"

"EH? Really?" Nanako's eyes widened in surprise.

'_I get the same reaction every time'_ Ryoma's mother thought in amusement, sipping a bit of the soup from the bubbling curry to taste.

To be continued…

-x-

A/N: I have no excuse. I'm really sorry for taking so long. (weeps)


End file.
